AOA 27

The charity concert, which had even invited a famous violinist and a full orchestra, ended amid great applause. A party followed in the art center’s banquet hall. With a charity auction and a simple prize drawing, the atmosphere heated up.

Next came the socializing portion. Wherever people gather, things are always the same. Everyone greeted each other warmly, asked after one another, and exchanged updates.

As expected, I trailed after Baek Mugyeong, leaving my impression with the Baek family, and then got dragged around by my biological father. He eagerly introduced me to everyone as his son who had been studying abroad and who had now married Baek Mugyeong, the new Executive Director of DS Motors.

Ever since I manifested as an omega, a dominant omega, right after our honeymoon, it was obvious how much prouder my father had become. His shoulders were practically floating.

I behaved like the obedient son. I greeted people properly and kept my words few.

It wasn’t until nearly an hour later that I was freed from my father. I escaped to a quiet corner of the banquet hall where the food was set up.

“Ugh.”

As soon as I chugged down some soda instead of alcohol, I let out a groan. No matter how much I’d braced myself, dealing with people was still exhausting.

As the potential spouse of someone who might inherit DS Motors, I received a wide range of looks, curiosity, suspicion, jealousy, mockery, indifference, and the calculating eyes of those wondering how to use me.

I ignored the nonsense and didn’t bother reacting. Even so, just being there was stressful.

Overtime and weekend shifts were easier. At least you got paid for those.

I grumbled inwardly, then reminded myself that I’d received a huge sum of money from Baek Jinseok to put up with this. And it hadn’t even started with a 1.

Before the regression, it had definitely been a 1. This time, shockingly, it started with a 3. I could only assume that Baek Jinseok had been truly thrilled by the fact I had manifested as an omega.

If enduring all this meant watching that massive allowance get tripled, I could take it.

Sighing deeply, I slowly scanned the room. Daesong Group’s power was undeniable. The banquet hall was extravagant, and among the guests were many celebrities and public figures I recognized.

Still, the biggest crowd gathered around Baek Jinseok. The layout made it abundantly clear: he was today’s star.

Despite nearing eighty, Baek Jinseok remained sharp and actively involved. But his age made people naturally more interested in his successor.

Baek Jinseok had four children: Baek Jaehan, the eldest son; Baek Junhan, the second son; Baek Sujin, the eldest daughter; and Baek Daehan, the third son.

It was practically accepted as fact that Baek Jaehan, the firstborn, would inherit Daesong Group. Baek Junhan had died over twenty years ago in a helicopter crash along with his wife. Baek Sujin, though an alpha, was a woman, and Baek Daehan wasn’t an alpha—so both were generally excluded.

Baek Jaehan’s position, once considered rock-solid, only recently began to waver. Several of his projects failed back to back, earning him the nickname “minus hands.” On top of that, his eldest son, now well over thirty, was constantly embroiled in controversies over abuse of power and physical assault, damaging the family’s reputation within the company.

In contrast, Baek Sujin, who managed the group’s hotels and department stores, was thriving. Over several years, she had restructured operations and pushed Daesong Department Store to the top of the industry.

Though Baek Jinseok held old-fashioned beliefs that daughters belonged to other families, Baek Sujin had divorced her husband, passed down her surname to her children, and made clear her intention to compete as a successor.

And then there was Baek Mugyeong, whom Baek Jinseok had personally summoned from the U.S. Though young and lacking experience, if Baek Jinseok lived another ten years, the dynamics could shift again.

Before the regression, I hadn’t understood all this. I’d just thought, Oh, typical chaebol succession drama.

But after being used as a punching bag a few times, I started picking up on the bigger picture. The side effects of the medication eventually dulled my thinking, but for a while, I’d understood how things moved.

Out of the three-way power struggle, Baek Jaehan, Baek Sujin, and Baek Mugyeong, the weakest was clearly Baek Mugyeong. Even so, he was young, good-looking, and popular.

Seeing him surrounded by people left a bitter taste in my mouth.

If I didn’t have a child, then Baek Mugyeong wouldn’t die.

I couldn’t forget the last image of him before the regression. That pale, lifeless face haunted me, and only strengthened my resolve to get divorced as soon as possible.

“Well, fancy seeing you here.”

I had been staring blankly at Baek Mugyeong when a voice called my name. I turned to see a familiar face—it was Baek Yeongseop, Baek Mugyeong’s older cousin and the firstborn son of Vice Chairman Baek Jaehan.

We’d already been introduced once at the wedding, and again just a little while ago tonight. I couldn’t pretend not to know him.

“Yes, hello.”

I greeted him politely to avoid giving him any opening. Something similar had happened before the regression, so I didn’t expect him to just walk away.

Sure enough, Baek Yeongseop took a step closer.

“Your face is definitely nice. My dad made a good pick.”

He looked a little like Baek Mugyeong, but more mean-spirited. I wasn’t surprised by his crude comment, he’d said the same thing before the regression.

Baek Yeongseop was the textbook definition of a third-generation chaebol brat, a walking PR disaster who embodied the risks of family-run conglomerates.

When he turned twenty, he made the news for speeding through downtown in a sports car, ignoring traffic signals. Add to that drunk driving, verbally abusing the police, and throwing a fit at the station, his name flooded the internet.

Daesong Group’s strategy team had mobilized but couldn’t contain the story entirely. Now, thanks to their efforts, most related videos and articles had vanished, but those scandals still came up now and then in online communities.

Even as he got older, Baek Yeongseop didn’t change. He stayed out of the news, but his occasional power-tripping rants often topped trending videos. His womanizing was infamous, even I’d heard about it before the regression.

Two years ago, paparazzi had released photos of him partying on a luxury yacht with a group of models in Kota Kinabalu. The article was published in the U.S., not Korea, so Daesong Group hadn’t managed to suppress it in time.

The worst part? It had happened less than three months after his wedding. The group did everything to keep the story from spreading domestically, but failed. First, he was just “a third-gen chaebol,” then someone said “from D Group,” and finally, his name was exposed.

Furious, Baek Jinseok summoned Baek Mugyeong from the U.S. and installed him as Executive Director of DS Motors, an unspoken rebuke to Baek Yeongseop, telling him to get his act together.

If you had to define it, Baek Mugyeong and Baek Yeongseop were rivals. But unlike Baek Mugyeong, who had no solid foundation, Baek Yeongseop was the son of the group’s Vice Chairman. He had the advantage in every way.

The most Baek Mugyeong could hope to inherit was DS Motors. And for that, he had died.

At the hands of Baek Jaehan, or Baek Yeongseop.

Both were people I had to avoid. Even with others nearby, just having Baek Yeongseop in front of me put me on edge.

“You only manifested recently, right? You barely smell like anything.”

“Yes.”

It had been less than a month since I manifested as an omega. Typically, pheromones were unstable at that stage and hard to control even with medication. Fortunately, the meds worked well for me, and I hadn’t had any issues.

“But hey, did you know that Mugyeong’s basically a monk? Does he even have sex? Huh?”

His continued rudeness made my expression harden. Before the regression, he’d asked if I could even have sex despite not being an omega. That alone showed how vile he was.

“I’m not going to answer that.”

“Hmm, no fun.”

Again, it was just like before. I assumed he’d turn around and leave, but suddenly, he grabbed my hand. A sharp musk hit my nose, so overpowering it felt like my nose might fall off. I reflexively yanked my hand away.

“What the? You’re fine?”

“What are you doing?”

“That’s interesting.”

Grinning lewdly, Baek Yeongseop reached toward me again, but a large figure stepped between us.

“That’s enough.”

I didn’t need to look to know it was Baek Mugyeong. With him standing there, he completely blocked my view of Baek Yeongseop.

“Your omega’s weird, you know that? Seems like he’s frigid. Heh, poor bastard.”

“Is that your excuse? You realize I’d be justified in punching you in the face, right?”

“Why so serious? I was just joking! Lighten up. Hahaha. I’m off. Enjoy your frigid little omega and live happily ever after.”

Only after Baek Yeongseop finally disappeared, scraping at nerves to the very end, could I take a proper breath.