ALL NOVEL 06
06
What is an Omega, you ask? Well.
A second gender? A trait? A peculiar constitution? A man who can get pregnant?
Yeon Ji-ho’s head turned completely white. It was no wonder; in his world, there was no one who didn’t know about Alphas and Omegas. So, naturally, he assumed that ‘the Star of Hadad’ would also be a world where trait individuals existed.
“Alpha or Omega… do you perhaps not know?”
Set shook his head quietly. Yeon Ji-ho’s mouth opened and closed repeatedly, as if he were trying to say something.
I guess I’ll have to find out who the author of ‘the Star of Hadad’ is as soon as the sun rises tomorrow. What kind of person writes a story without even including the Alpha-Omega worldview?
It was Set who caught Yeon Ji-ho’s thoughts from soaring to the ends of the universe. He took a step closer to Yeon Ji-ho and asked.
“Can you explain it to me?”
“Ah, no!”
“What?”
“Please just sleep for now. I-I’ll see you tomorrow!”
With that, Yeon Ji-ho fled to his room, leaving the man behind. Just before closing the door, he thought he caught a glimpse of Set staring at him, but that was all.
Once he quickly got onto his bed, Yeon Ji-ho burrowed into the blankets. Then, without realizing it, he began to tremble his shoulders. His body was completely out of control.
‘Dirty Omega bastard.’
‘Bastard, stop hitting on men.’
‘Is there really a filthy guy who would stick with that bastard?’
It was a memory from a long time ago. A memory he thought had weathered away and could no longer hurt him.
But it wasn’t. Explaining his trait to a stranger who didn’t know about Omegas made him involuntarily shut his mouth. He was worried that Set, who learned he was a ‘male Omega,’ would react no differently than the others.
That night, Yeon Ji-ho trembled alone under the blankets and finally fell asleep only in the late dawn. Omega. Those three letters felt like they were tightly wrapping around his ankle.
***
On a bright morning with the sun shining down, Yeon Ji-ho could not hide his drowsiness as he stretched and got up.
He could have slept in, but the sun was too bright for him to do so. Still, he didn’t put up blackout curtains because of his mother’s insistence that he should become a morning person.
“What should I eat for breakfast…”
Muttering to himself as he headed to the living room, something felt off. He sensed another presence besides himself.
Then Yeon Ji-ho stopped dead in his tracks. He looked at the scene unfolding before him in disbelief.
“Oh… you’re awake.”
The man was doing push-ups with one hand on the ground. He wasn’t using his feet or the other hand; he was supporting his entire body with just one palm.
How much core strength would that require? …No, is it even possible with just core strength?
“Ah, hello. You’re really working hard this morning…”
Yeon Ji-ho scratched his head out of habit while quietly stealing glances at the man’s muscular back, glistening with sweat. Set soon stood up gracefully and said,
“If I made you uncomfortable, I apologize.”
“No, it’s not that. I just thought you were working hard.”
“Working hard? What do you mean by that?”
“Exercising in the morning isn’t an easy thing, is it?”
“Then does that mean it’s a difficult thing?”
Set Gorgon was a knight and weapon raised to fight wars in place of a duke since childhood. For him, morning exercise was as natural as breathing.
Remembering that fact, Yeon Ji-ho fell silent. Having never exercised in his life, he found the man who worked out in the morning to be impressive.
“I’m planning to make a simple seaweed soup for breakfast. Is that okay with you?”
“Seaweed soup?”
“Yes. Most of the ingredients at home are for Korean dishes…”
“Anything is fine.”
As the man went to wash up for a moment, Yeon Ji-ho quickly began preparing the meal. While soaking the seaweed in cold water, he washed the rice mixed with black rice and set it in the rice cooker.
Without pausing, Yeon Ji-ho cracked a few pieces of ham and two eggs into the frying pan. The sizzling sound was appetizing.
Seaweed soup was one of the dishes Yeon Ji-ho often made when cooking simply. After stir-frying the soaked seaweed with beef and sesame oil, a savory aroma filled the air.
“What should I do…?”
“Ah, just sit there!”
Yeon Ji-ho, who was too busy multitasking, spoke without even looking at Set, who had suddenly appeared beside him. However, instead of sitting down as instructed, Set kept pacing around restlessly.
Glancing at Set while stir-frying the seaweed, Yeon Ji-ho noticed that he seemed anxious about doing nothing.
“Then could you help me with this? Just move the eggs and ham onto a plate.”
“Sure.”
“Be careful, the pan is hot.”
Set awkwardly grabbed the frying pan handle. Then, cautiously, he began to transfer each piece with a spatula.
Then, plop. One of the soft-boiled eggs burst.
“Ah…”
“Oh, it broke. I’ll eat that one. Could you just move the plate to the table now?”
Set’s expression darkened slightly. Yeon Ji-ho, noticing this out of the corner of his eye, smiled faintly. Then he called out to Set while stirring the nearly finished seaweed soup.
“I’m going to assign you the most important task from now on.”
“What is it?”
“Tasting it. Ah, go ahead.”
Set tensed at the words ‘most important task’ but looked troubled at the spoon pushed toward him.
“I don’t know what the right taste is.”
“Cooking is good if it suits the taste of the person you’re feeding. So only you can know if I cooked well or not.”
“…”
Unable to refute that, Set opened his mouth slightly. Yeon Ji-ho, blowing on the spoon to cool it down, fed him a spoonful of the broth.
“How is it? Is it salty? Is it bland?”
“…It’s delicious.”
“Great, then I’ll serve this in a bowl, so you can take it. It’s hot, so use those gloves.”
Once Yeon Ji-ho ladled the seaweed soup and rice, it was Set’s turn to carry it. Despite it being their first time, the two worked surprisingly well together.
After taking out a few side dishes from the refrigerator and transferring them to bowls, a pretty decent table was set. Looking down at the steaming meal with a proud expression, Yeon Ji-ho said,
“It looks delicious. Please eat up!”
“Uh… okay.”
He first scooped the soup with a spoon and took a bite; the seasoning was just right. It was neither too bland nor too salty, perfect. Yeon Ji-ho continued his meal with neat movements.
Set soon awkwardly followed suit, stirring his spoon along with Yeon Ji-ho. He encountered a challenge when Yeon Ji-ho picked up some kimchi with chopsticks.
Trying to mimic his chopstick skills, even just by glancing, proved to be quite difficult. Just then, Set’s meal momentarily paused.
Suddenly, a well-fermented piece of kimchi landed appetizingly on his rice bowl. Looking up, he saw Yeon Ji-ho smiling at him while holding the chopsticks.
“Try eating it with the seaweed soup. I made this kimchi myself last winter, and it’s really delicious.”
“…”
At those words, Set silently set down his chopsticks. Instead, he picked up the spoon he knew how to use and took a big scoop of rice along with the kimchi he had been given. With his large mouth, the scoop disappeared cleanly inside.
As he chewed the food that entered his mouth without a sound, memories of his childhood suddenly flashed through his mind. The days when he first learned table manners after entering the Gorgon family.
“If you can’t do this alone, then get out of here.”
“Did you think your situation changed just because you have the name Gorgon? Your two eyes are the reason for your misfortune, the mark of your curse.”
“What can you do by yourself?”
To avoid being cast out from the family, he had to be able to do anything on his own. Just by stealing a glance, he had to replicate it, and if he failed, he faced corresponding punishment.
Otherwise, he would have to return to the orphanage, suffering from hunger and disease, so Set had to manage on his own to survive.
“How is it? It’s quite edible, right?”
“…Yeah. It’s good.”
“Oh? Thank goodness. Does the kimchi suit your taste? People who can’t eat this never can. If you don’t want to eat it, it’s fine; just eat what you like.”
That’s why it felt strange.
If you can’t do it alone, you can learn. If you still can’t do it, I’ll do it for you. If you don’t want to do it, it doesn’t matter; just eat what’s delicious.
Yeon Ji-ho spoke and acted like that at every moment. For Set, who had lived a life of doing everything alone, it was an utterly unfamiliar experience.
“Using chopsticks is hard, right? Take your time learning. Today, I’ll pick everything up for you.”
“…”
“Or should I just bring you a fork?”
Set felt strangely teary-eyed. Perhaps it was because his own eyes were the reason for his misfortune.
“This yolk is delicious even if it bursts. I’ll enjoy it.”
For these cursed eyes, he found the person before him to be too radiant.