AOA 72

Thinking back to the previous timeline, Baek Jinseok’s patience had lasted no more than two years. And now that Jeong Minchae had manifested as an omega, the timeline might even be faster.

One option was to give Baek Jinseok the alpha great grandson he wanted, and use that to buy time in order to seize control of Daesong Group. But Baek Mugyeong had ruled that out long before marrying Jeong Minchae.

The future Baek Mugyeong knew extended only two years ahead. While he could make a fortune using that knowledge, money alone wasn’t enough to take Daesong Group.
In the end, his target became Baek Jaehan and Baek Yeongseop. And just recently, he found the first clue.
Jake was confident he could dig up evidence, given time and money. It wouldn’t be long before Baek Yeongseop went down.

But Baek Mugyeong had no intention of explaining all of this to Jeong Minchae. Before the regression, Jeong Minchae had passed information about Today Dream to Baek Yeongseop. He was acting like a completely different person now, but the distrust ran deep.

“A real pregnancy is also one possible strategy.”

“W-what?!”

“Male omegas are known to have difficulty carrying pregnancies, and miscarriages are more common. If there’s genuine pressure and no way to avoid it, then you may have to be prepared to go that far. But in that case, the risks you’d have to bear would be very high. Childbirth is dangerous. Just… know that this option exists.”

What had started as an ordinary conversation had now fully morphed into schemes and strategy. According to Baek Mugyeong’s calculations, there would be no need for Jeong Minchae to actually get pregnant. Still, he offered a last-resort solution. Jeong Minchae’s face twisted slightly as he bit his lip. Fear, confusion, and resolve flickered across his expression.

“Yes, I understand.”

He answered solemnly with a nod, though he couldn’t completely hide his fear. His eyes reddened, as if holding back tears, and the hands clasped on his lap were trembling.

Baek Mugyeong felt like he’d unintentionally just threatened him. He scowled. He had expected a reaction like this, but seeing it in person didn’t sit well. Setting aside the fact that ruthless methods were sometimes necessary, he still felt he’d pushed Jeong Minchae too hard, just by stating the facts and offering a path forward.

“…I was only speaking in terms of the worst-case scenario. If the pressure gets that bad, I’ll blow the whole thing up myself. So you don’t need to worry too much.”

“…Okay.”

As Jeong Minchae relaxed and let his shoulders drop, Baek Mugyeong felt some relief as well. At the same time, the faint smile in Minchae’s eyes made him suddenly want to lean in and kiss him.

“I’ll go lie down. I won’t go outside. I’m going to bed early tonight.”

“Alright.”

Jeong Minchae bowed and stood up, heading toward the bedroom. The moment he disappeared behind the door, limping just slightly, Baek Mugyeong covered his mouth to stifle a sigh and closed his eyes. Last night, he’d admitted to himself that he was physically attracted to Jeong Minchae. He brushed it off by blaming how intense their sex had been, and how he’d seen him naked.

But now, just seeing that smile had triggered a rush of desire. It wasn’t much, but he felt heat pooling below the waist. Rut wasn’t even close, but he felt like he was going into rut.

“…Damn it.”

Baek Mugyeong grimaced. Letting alpha instincts burst out like this was the worst possible outcome.
Taking a deep breath, he got up. He needed another cold shower tonight.

***

Knowing the future, even having gone through regression, didn’t mean everything would bend to my will. I’d experienced that more than once. And some events came crashing down with no warning at all.

Campus life in March began just like it had in the previous timeline. As a transfer student, I wandered around the department. I participated in group presentations and was now preparing for midterms.

Fortunately, having manifested as an omega meant I was no longer at risk of substance addiction, so at least I didn’t cause trouble for my groupmates.
Still, I had no real friends, so eating alone in the student cafeteria remained unchanged.

“No seats in the reading room. Where do you study?”

“Oh, in the clubroom.”

“You can do that?”

“There’s a big table in the middle. No one cares what you do there.”

“Lucky. I haven’t been to the clubroom in ages.”

“There’s that open lecture room too. Go there.”

Midterms were starting next week, so most conversations in the cafeteria revolved around that. I was picking at a late lunch, only half-listening to the students chatting next to me. My mind was elsewhere, specifically, on my biological father’s sixtieth birthday party this weekend.

Before regression, the event had been festive, but I hadn’t enjoyed it. Baek Mugyeong had claimed he had a business trip to Japan and just sent a giant flower wreath. My biological father had been humiliated in front of others when his perfect son-in-law didn’t show up, and, naturally, took it out on me.

At the time, I’d been dealing with the side effects of suppressants, barely lucid. His nagging hurt, but not for long. Jeong Guhyeob had poured beer over my head as a joke and tripped me to the floor. I let it slide. I ignored the whispers behind me saying I hadn’t even manifested as an omega.

But walking around soaked in beer led to a cold, which turned into near-pneumonia. I had to be hospitalized. My father chewed me out for poor self-care.

This time, with Baek Mugyeong attending the party, my father probably wouldn’t lose his temper. Jeong Guhyeon’s antics were a concern, but if I stayed by Baek Mugyeong’s side, it’d be fine. Naturally, my thoughts wandered to Baek Mugyeong.

It had been almost three months since we had sex with clear minds. I hadn’t seen him much since. He was obviously avoiding me, but since it had happened in the previous timeline too, I didn’t take it personally.

What bothered me was his unpredictability. Him attending the sixtieth birthday party was something I should’ve welcomed with open arms, but I didn’t understand why he was suddenly doing it.

He’d even come to the ER after getting a call from Choi Jaeha that I was hurt. Normally, he would’ve just sent someone else. Lifting me up in front of everyone, undressing me, none of that felt like Baek Mugyeong.

Our relationship felt similarly awkward as it had before regression, but his actions had changed in several ways.

The reason for the butterfly effect wasn’t hard to guess: After manifesting as an omega, I’d had sex with him three times. That alone seemed to have changed a lot. And most of the changes were good.

The problem was Baek Jinseok.
Unlike before, I had manifested as an omega earlier this time. I figured it’d be impossible to last two years without having a child. But when Baek Mugyeong brought up my younger brother, I’d been so shocked my mind went blank. When he talked about worst-case scenarios, I genuinely felt like I might lose it, because it reminded me of why Baek Mugyeong had died before.

The only thing that gave me relief was him saying that if things went bad, he’d ruin everything himself. If not for that, I might’ve stayed up all night, drowning in worry.

Of course, I couldn’t rely on Baek Mugyeong alone. Divorce wouldn’t fix everything. With my father’s personality, he’d definitely try to marry me off again. I had to become strong enough to oppose him myself.

My thoughts circled back to the sixtieth birthday party. It had been over ten days since the accident during the cherry blossom viewing. Thanks to consistent physical therapy, my sprain had improved, and the half-cast was removed. I was relieved I’d be able to attend the party looking normal.

“Wow. It’s skyrocketing.”

“Think it’s a pump-and-dump scheme?”

“Wouldn’t be the first time.”

“Yeah. Ride the wave and cash out.”

“Bastards like that screw the little guys.”

“That candlestick just keeps climbing.” (candlestick represents the price movement of a stock during a set time )

The students who had been talking about exams earlier suddenly switched topics. It took me a second to realize they were talking about stocks.
Just in case, I pulled out my phone.

I’d already installed a stock trading app before getting the wedding gift money from Baek Jinseok. I’d researched how to trade and read charts online. Once I got the gift, I invested almost all of it into one pharmaceutical company stock that would explode in value in the first half of the year.

My fingers trembled as I tapped the screen a few times. The chart appeared. Just like they said, red candlesticks were shooting up.

“…Wow.”

I held back the urge to cheer and instead quietly clenched my fist under the table. The future where Nogeum Pharmaceuticals developed a new drug hadn’t changed. Which meant the stock would go up at least fivefold.

I had money now, real, inflated money. I’d only eaten half my lunch, but I already felt full. Like I owned the world.