ATGRA 77

As I was about to argue, Jung Pureum held me back from behind.

“I’m okay.”

“What do you mean, okay!”

“I didn’t even get hurt. It’s not good for you, hyung, if things get noisy over something like this again.”

The police officer who was dealing with me quickly assessed the situation. It was obvious he was thinking, Looks like this will pass without incident, and my anger flared up.

Ignoring my churning stomach, I patted Jung Pureum down here and there. Thankfully, because the guy who was taken away was shorter and smaller than me, it seemed he wasn’t able to injure Jung Pureum.

Surely, he wasn’t going to get a slap-on-the-wrist punishment just because I didn’t have a single injury, right? The police left in a hurry before I could argue any further. Their withdrawal speed was faster than their arrival speed.

“Director, are you okay?”

Once the situation was somewhat under control, Ms. Kim Miyoung came out of the clinic.

She said she had evacuated the patients to the emergency exit just in case. It would be a headache to explain the situation later, but it was a relief that no one was hurt.

“Of course I’m okay.”

“Still, it’s a relief that no one seems to be hurt.”

“He swung a mallet, even if it was rubber. Does it make sense for it not to be attempted murder just because a Beta attacked an Alpha?”

“It doesn’t make sense.”

“Right?”

“Still, we should let it pass quietly if we can.”

“…”

“It’ll get complicated if it becomes an issue again. You know that, Director.”

She was right.

Our clinic needs to lie low for a while. The situation had improved a little after the drama’s hype died down, but if the problem gets bigger here, it will be really difficult to handle.

So, thinking rationally, it was right to just throw that one YouTuber in jail and bury this incident. The problem was that it didn’t seem like that bastard would even go to jail. He was still young, and if he had no similar prior convictions, he would probably get out on probation.

Even if I don’t agree to a settlement, it could end with just a fine. He might even get a reduced sentence by displaying a letter of apology and a letter of remorse and claiming diminished capacity.

“Hyung.”

As I irritably swept my hair back, Jung Pureum, standing behind me, leaned his head closer.

“How about closing the clinic for a while?”

“Close it again? No way. This is our peak season.”

“People like that don’t give up easily. I’m worried you’ll get hurt, hyung.”

“Pureum is right. Even if it’s not for long, think about closing for a bit. If not, we should at least change our security company.”

No matter how I think about it, closing is difficult. I’d rather spend a lot of money and change the security company instead.

As my thoughts reached that point, I was so dumbfounded that the back of my neck tensed up. Technically, I’m the victim, so why do I have to hire a new security company with my own money? Why do I, the victim, have to worry about closing the clinic?

However, getting angry like this would only raise my own blood pressure. I grabbed the arm of Jung Pureum, who was looking at me with a worried face.

“You, don’t come to the clinic for the time being.”

“…What?”

“You’re someone who has to enter the training camp soon. What if you get caught up with a crazy bastard like that and get hurt somewhere?”

“…”

“He said he even did a background check on you. It’s better to prevent danger in advance.”

Jung Pureum’s pupils trembled as if an earthquake had struck. But in this situation, even Jung Pureum wouldn’t be able to retort with, I don’t want to!

No matter how fairly Jung Pureum had earned his spot in the Olympics, if he got injured, everything would be for nothing. If a doping or injury issue arose, another athlete would take his place.

“I can tolerate myself getting hurt, but I can’t stand you getting hurt.”

“Hyung…”

“On top of that, you getting hurt because of my problem, not yours? Not until I’m dead and buried, absolutely not!”

“…”

“Until you safely enter the training camp, take care of yourself and stay out of trouble. This is absolutely not because I don’t like you, but…”

“I know. It’s because you do like me.”

“Yes, you know well.”

I can’t help but worry, even if I try not to. Unlike Jung Pureum, I’m the type to attract trouble just by breathing. The level of aggro I drew was different.

If he’s by my side, Jung Pureum’s career might be ruined. I had tried not to think about this until now, but Minjun TV’s rubber mallet had shattered all my efforts.

It was a good thing he dodged it well; if that crazy bastard had hit Jung Pureum’s shoulder even once, things would have really blown up. The Republic of Korea would be losing three gold medals it was set to win next year!

Jung Pureum slowly nodded his head at my request to preserve his body for the time being. The way he subtly rolled his eyes to the side didn’t seem very trustworthy, but he would know he had to listen to me if he had any sense.

“Then I’ll be out in front of the apartment building to match your quitting time, hyung.”

“What for? Are you worried about me? I can subdue a punk like that in an instant with a large needle and a broom.”

As long as I have tools, I’m an offense-oriented oriental medicine doctor who can beat anyone. Jung Pureum smiled at my reaction. It was the smile of a Buddha who had reached a certain level of enlightenment.

“Of course I believe in your strength, hyung.”

“Of course. I’m an amazing offense-oriented oriental medicine doctor, after all.”

“But, if I don’t do at least this, it’s hard to see your face, hyung.”

“…”

“…Oh my.”

Ms. Kim Miyoung took a step back, as if to say she would excuse herself. Does this Jung Pureum kid know no shame? Why does he say things like that where everyone can hear?

“…Do whatever you want, then.”

“I will. You shouldn’t leave work too late either, hyung. If you can, leave with the others…”

Jung Pureum held onto me and began to ramble on and on about safety precautions. Listening to him say he couldn’t bear to see me get hurt before he was dead and buried made a corner of my heart tickle a bit.

…This kid, he’s already repeating the exact words I just said. They say you shouldn’t even drink cold water recklessly in front of children, and that saying was spot on.

Jung Pureum rolled his right shoulder once. There was no pain, but the movement felt a little unnatural.

Recently, the coach had told Jung Pureum to pay more attention to physical therapy than to training. Jung Pureum was faithfully following the coach’s instructions.

Even before his unlucky encounter with Minjun TV, Jung Pureum had been feeling a strain in his right shoulder. Having followed the path of an elite athlete since childhood, he was used to injuries, but it had been a long time since he had felt this kind of pain.

He hadn’t had any aching joints since his growing pains. Jung Pureum glanced at the coach, who was bellowing at the other athletes.

The training intensity, which was already excessive, had become even more severe after the national team selection. It was so bad that even the older athletes who were jealous of Jung Pureum would ask him if he was okay.

Thanks to being selected for the national team in both long-distance and short-distance events, Jung Pureum was in a situation where he had to pay attention to both endurance and speed. Since the things he had to consider had doubled, it was inevitable that the training intensity would increase.

However, the coach was pushing Jung Pureum too hard. It was so obvious that even others could see he wanted to control Jung Pureum somehow.

“I told you to take proper care of your body.”

“…”

“You’re getting physical therapy every day, so why isn’t your speed coming back? At this rate, you won’t be able to compete in the short-distance events.”

“It will get better before the training camp. They said there were no problems with the bones or ligaments.”

“Tsk, a guy who can’t even endure that much training wants to be a national athlete… You’ve gotten lazy since you became an Alpha, haven’t you? You wouldn’t have been like this in the past.”

How can he be so nasty with his words! Jung Pureum was once again amazed by the coach’s verbal skills. There was no need to reveal his inferiority complex in such a way.

The team doctor, who was quietly listening to the coach’s words from the side, looked up and observed Jung Pureum’s expression.

“Coach, as I’ve said before… it would be better to lower the training intensity a bit. Right now it’s just a slightly strained muscle, but if he keeps training at that intensity, it could get worse.”

“I’ll handle the training intensity adjustments myself. I’m the coach.”

“But…”

“Pureum is on the national team. He has to work hard to win a gold medal, he has to work hard. Because Jung Pureum was originally a Beta, he has to work twice as hard as others to barely keep up.”

It was ridiculous. Jung Pureum discreetly lowered his head to keep from laughing out loud. The coach, thinking he had succeeded in intimidating Jung Pureum, raised his voice to its full volume.

“It’s even more of a headache because other guys have been blabbing about how he was originally a Beta. I did warn them, but these bastards need to actually listen.”

It was just a few days ago that the coach had gathered the students and warned them not to post things on the internet.

This was because people who knew through the grapevine that Jung Pureum had become an Alpha from a Beta in his third year of high school had spread posts about him on online communities.

Fortunately, thanks to timely reports, the detailed content was quickly hidden, but Jung Pureum’s personal information had already been thoroughly exposed.

[So is Mr. J really competing in the Olympics?]

└[Yeah yeah]

└[What’s his event?]

└[Can’t say. If I do, someone will rush in like that hornet Mister and report me]

[Swi cough cough Oh my, the fine dust here is ugh ugh ming]

└[Thx thx I was so curious, I found out thanks to your sacrifice]

└[Wow, he wasn’t even born an Alpha and he’s a national swimmer?]

└[Hey, delete the word sw////imming, quickly]

└[Hornet Mister report in 3 seconds 3 2 1… half of 1]

Perhaps because everyone was worried about being sued, his real name wasn’t openly circulating. However, a blurry photo of Jung Pureum, which someone had spread, was floating around the internet.

[Please provide a detailed explanation of whether Mr. J became handsome after becoming an Alpha or if he was handsome from the start]

└[He was probably just a handsome Beta from the beginning]

└[No way, he got that face after becoming an Alpha]

└[What are you talking about, Betas can be handsome too]

└[Are you crying? Like a Beta who couldn’t become an Alpha?]

Jung Pureum let out a long sigh.

Every time he tried to make some romantic progress with Moon Yeonghwa, a problem like this would pop up. If Moon Yeonghwa found out his shoulder was hurting in this situation, she would absolutely not stand still.