By Zephyria 
As a sharply edged Joo Min-hyeok approached, Seo-joo’s body flinched, his shoulders trembling. Unlike last time, Seo-joo didn’t act out with aggression; I could feel that his movements had become considerably more cautious. Despite the hint of fear in his posture, Seo-joo stepped in front of me, attempting to block Joo Min-hyeok.
I took Seo-joo’s hand to stop him from standing in the way. I could see that he was afraid, and I didn’t want him to step forward. Joo Min-hyeok might have let things slide the first time, but he wouldn’t do it a second time. Beside us, Jin-su seemed to have many questions, sensing the shift in atmosphere with the appearance of an unfamiliar Alpha, but he didn’t ask.
Tension flowed through the air, making it obvious to anyone that the situation was strange. As Joo Min-hyeok, who had been quite a distance away, drew closer step by step, I hurriedly pulled Seo-joo’s arm.
“Take Jin-su and go first.”
“What? No! I can’t leave you here alone!”
Seo-joo raised his voice sharply, but I didn’t waver. It was obvious that nothing good would come of them staying here. Moreover, Joo Min-hyeok’s face was completely uncovered. It would be bad for everyone if Jin-su recognized him.
“I’m worried Jin-su might recognize that man. I don’t want this becoming gossip. Don’t worry about me; actually, this is for the best. There’s a lot we need to wrap up, so I’m going to settle things once and for all today.”
I needed to find out what was going on in that head of his today. If he was just going to show up, look at me quietly, and disappear, he shouldn’t have made it so obvious… I couldn’t stand seeing him do this repeatedly. I didn’t know what kind of scheme he was playing, but it was incredibly irritating. If he wanted a divorce, he should do it cleanly, and if there was something he wanted, he should just demand it.
“Hyung, that man. Do you know him? He looks familiar, where have I seen him?”
Just as I feared, Jin-su tilted his head while looking at Joo Min-hyeok. He’d probably seen him everywhere—in the news or advertisements. As Jin-su searched his memory for where he had seen Joo Min-hyeok, Seo-joo, with a stiff expression, lightly pushed Jin-su’s back, urging him to leave quickly.
“If you’ve met, you should at least introduce us instead of just sending him away.”
Obliviously, the voice I didn’t want to hear rang out, and we were now at a distance where it would be awkward to simply slip away. Seo-joo, who had been about to turn around, hesitated a few times before reluctantly greeting the man approaching them. Joo Min-hyeok, who had reached us before I knew it, looked at Seo-joo and spoke.
“You’re a quiet little cat today.”
At the word ‘cat,’ Seo-joo’s shoulders flinched, and I felt a sudden surge of guilt. I’m sorry, Seo-joo. I didn’t think one slip of the tongue would last this long… Joo Min-hyeok’s eyes, which had been scanning us, turned toward Jin-su.
“There’s no need to look at him like that. He’s my friend.”
“Who said anything? You two seem quite close. I guess you get along well?”
“Not bad.”
Whether it was because of Joo Min-hyeok’s presence or the freezing atmosphere between him and me, Jin-su kept his breath held and watched us, his eyes darting back and forth.
“Jin-su. I’ll contact you again, go ahead with Seo-joo hyung.”
“Huh? What about you, hyung?”
“I’ll go after I finish some business. Don’t worry and just go.”
Whether it was because of my firm push on Seo-joo’s back or because he had read the situation, Jin-su began to slowly leave the beach following Seo-joo. Even so, the two of them occasionally looked back to check on me, remaining wary of Joo Min-hyeok.
“It seems feelings have developed in the meantime? Though, if what you say is true, it’s just friendship.”
“Yes. It’s friendship.”
“Then why send him away? How often does one get the chance to see the Emperor’s face from this close?”
“Your Majesty, please lower your voice.”
“I don’t mind, so why do you? You’ve even become friends with the Grand Imperial Concubine, so what’s so big about the Emperor? You should have introduced me as your husband.”
Husband? Has this crazy man been drinking during the day? Meanwhile, his voice had been quite loud, and I was terrified that Jin-su might have heard our conversation. It bothered me that Jin-su’s eyes widened as he continued to look back.
“Stop looking. And don’t try any petty tricks like the other Alphas you kicked out of the island. I clearly told you he is my friend.”
“Is friendship possible between an Omega and an Alpha? I don’t think so. Just looking at that brat’s pheromones clinging to your body tells me that. Usually, pheromone traces aren’t left between mere friends.”
Pheromones? At the mention of pheromone traces, I quickly lifted my arm to smell. However, because I was receiving treatment for my pheromone abnormality, I couldn’t smell Jin-su’s pheromones at all. In fact, while meeting Jin-su, I had been so unable to sense pheromones that I’d almost forgotten he was an Alpha.
“…It doesn’t seem like pheromones intentionally coated on the body, but did you really not know?”
“What is the intent behind asking if I knew? I didn’t know. Thanks to a certain someone, something went wrong with my pheromones.”
I didn’t know why Joo Min-hyeok’s question about whether I knew pheromones remained on my body sounded so unpleasant, and I gave a sharp reply. I came here because I didn’t know. And am I wrong? It’s true that I became like this because of Joo Min-hyeok.
Regardless, not being able to sense pheromones really is inconvenient. It seems the pheromones that naturally leaked out while we were together earlier had clung to my body. Sometimes I don’t even realize when my own pheromones are leaking.
“But why do you keep coming here just to monitor me and then leave? Do you have that much free time?”
“It’s a quick trip if I take the helicopter, but I don’t have that much time to spend monitoring you.”
Must be nice to come by helicopter. I grumbled, brushing my body here and there to get rid of Jin-su’s pheromones.
“Next time you come, bring the divorce papers. Unless you want to make a huge scene by taking this to court.”
“I just came because I was curious about what you were doing.”
“Are we in a relationship where we should be curious about each other?”
“…At least I have many things I’m curious about.”
At his utterly confident demeanor, I ended up shouting. How could a human being be this confident? He had moved past being shameless. If he was going to be this brazen, he should have at least apologized.
There was no reason to maintain such an absurd relationship with someone who didn’t even seem to have the intention to apologize. If the divorce hadn’t happened until now, we could just split up now.
“Your Majesty. It would be best to end this relationship now. I do not want a relationship like this. I no longer wish to have my time interrupted while being swayed by your will. Please stop deceiving me.”
“…Deceiving? It was absolutely not that. I never had any intention of doing so.”
“Your current behavior—no, everything you’ve done to me until now—was all deception.”
“I’m sorry if you felt that way, but that wasn’t my intention. I…”
“It’s not that I ‘felt’ it, it’s the truth! It’s a fact, so why do you keep denying everything? Why do you just deny it every single day!”
He was busy justifying himself, emphasizing that his actions weren’t wrong. That’s how it looked to me.
“Why didn’t you tell me that the divorce hadn’t gone through all this time? You knew everything, so how could you screw me over like this!”
Having lost my reason, I spat out the words I had kept bottled up inside. I shouted so loudly that I became breathless, but I didn’t stop reprimanding him.
“Why, why! Why do you always only think of yourself? Without a single thought for me, always doing whatever you want, however you want! How on earth was that for my own good!”
As the thread of my reason snapped, memories I had buried deep inside because I didn’t want to recall them burst forth like a flood. The moments passed before me like a panorama, as if they had happened yesterday. Me being beaten by my grandfather along with the news of Joo Min-hyeok’s disappearance. And my poor child, who announced its existence before me in bright red blood. As those memories surged forward, my body trembled violently, and I felt like I was going crazy.
“And after all that, why do you say it was for my own good? You used me for your own goals and then threw me away! What exactly about that was for me!”
“Calm down, Cha Hae-joo! Just calm down for a moment!”
Startled by the sight of me screaming and shaking as if having a seizure, Joo Min-hyeok grabbed my shoulders and urgently tried to calm me down. But I ruthlessly shook off his hand.
“Don’t touch me! Were the things you did ‘for me’ really for me? No, they weren’t. They were for your precious ‘greater cause’!”
“Hae-joo…”
“Why? Did I say something wrong? When I was insulted by Lee Si-yoon, and on the day I was chased by the Prime Minister, you weren’t there! You were never by my side when things happened to me! And after that, you say it was for me? If you have a conscience, you shouldn’t say such things!”
I pressed him, pouring out my resentment as if venting a lifelong grudge. I even dared to speak informally, letting out the accumulated rage. I hated his confidence, the way he dared to come find me and act as he pleased.
What exactly was this thing Joo Min-hyeok claimed was ‘for my own good’? I wanted to know and was curious too. Foolishly, I had liked this Alpha in front of me so much. Yes, I admit it. I liked this man so much that I forgot the plan to leave the palace alive. I truly loved the kindness he showed me. I never heard a single word saying he loved me, but I believed we felt the same.
“I never dreamed you would try to use me. It’s so heartbreaking and shameful that while you were thinking of me that way and making plans, I was intoxicated by a dream of my own.”
Would he be bored of these words, since I had said them enough to make his ears bleed when I was in the palace? Or would he understand my heart even a little? It didn’t matter. I had no intention of living like a fool anymore, so I didn’t want to know his feelings.
“I never want to live being swayed by you again. I feel like I can only breathe if I escape from you. So, get a divorce. I don’t want to see your name on my resident registration.”
“Hae-joo…”
I pushed forward against Joo Min-hyeok, who could do nothing but call my name.