Pig Government Official

-10-

The older alphas, their eyes gleaming, wouldn’t leave Won Junjae’s side. They lavished praise on Won Junjae and CEO Won Youngjae, ultimately ending with suggestions to meet their omega children.

Although Junjae found it amusing that they thought he’d be pleased by their compliments, he maintained a calm expression and listened to their words. It was better to maintain an atmosphere where he couldn’t mingle with the older alphas while conversing.

When the moment came to exchange small talk with alphas of similar age, omegas would appear as if from hiding, emitting sickeningly sweet pheromones that gave Junjae a headache.

Today would surely include this unavoidable ritual, but it seemed better to drag out time on this side, so he decided to extend this boring time.

“…”

As someone began to bring up a new topic, he sensed that scent. The scent that had been irritating his nervous system lately.

Junjae’s head turned immediately towards the source of the scent.

Sure enough, at the dessert table, there was that pig kid, in a state of bliss with a champagne glass in one hand and a tart in the other.

Wearing what appeared to be the dark navy suit with a bowtie from the tailor shop he’d visited with Park Jihoon, he looked utterly ridiculous. He seemed to have dressed up, but still looked the least appealing among the omegas at the party. Coming to a party all dressed up? Trying to snag an alpha? With that body?

Moreover, the pig kid seemed to have come just to eat, already on his third tart from the dessert table. Junjae had never seen anyone eat more than one dessert at a party. It wasn’t as if they actually invited people who needed charity to these charity events.

He couldn’t understand how this guy had met two people from the Won family. What charm could they possibly see in this fat, unremarkable pig? Actually, he didn’t want to know what charm he might have. He just wanted to remove this pig from his sight.

And that thought quickly led to action.

Junjae approached, his gaze fixed on the pig kid. He felt he needed to see with his own eyes this pig fleeing the party with a face red from embarrassment after Junjae expressed his displeasure.

Usually, when he moved like this, people in the room would pretend not to notice while focusing all their attention on him. That pig kid should have felt it too and trembled in fear seeing Junjae approach with an unpleasant expression.

But…

This guy wasn’t even turning his head, stuffing a fourth tart into his mouth. Despite Junjae emitting so much pheromone, he wasn’t paying any attention. Did he really come just to eat? Junjae’s steps became irritated.

“Did you come here to eat?”

Junjae, arriving in front of Jeonggwan, lashed out in an annoyed voice without even catching his breath.

“…Huh?”

Jeonggwan’s head, mouth full of tart, finally turned towards Junjae.

His mouth was smeared with cream cheese from biting into a tart topped with cream cheese and blueberries, and his round eyes met Junjae’s with a genuinely questioning look.

“…Eat,”

Junjae’s lips, which had parted to embarrass him further, closed again.

Jeonggwan’s eyes had changed to a “Huh? Huh?” look, as if recognizing Junjae. Jeonggwan chewed the tart in his mouth, his face full of things he wanted to say as he met Junjae’s eyes.

However, perhaps because he had bitten off too much at once, Jeonggwan stared at Junjae for quite a while, chewing slowly. His eyes were full of “I want to speak quickly! Just a moment!”

Junjae frowned as he met Jeonggwan’s eyes. Earlier he had been so annoyed he wanted to tell him to take that and leave, but Jeonggwan’s urgent expression made him lose his words. His face, chewing the tart until his cheeks looked ready to burst, looked just like a squirrel storing winter food, and his eyes looking straight up at Junjae were like a dog waiting for a treat.

“…”

For a moment, the strength left his body, and he stood still with his hands in his pockets, thinking, “Alright, let’s see what you have to say.”

Finally, having finished chewing and swallowing the tart, Jeonggwan’s eyes lit up as he finally spoke.

“Are you really 32 years old?”

What… What is he saying? What did he just say?

Junjae’s expression twitched, wondering if he had heard correctly. However, Jeonggwan interpreted this expression as “I’m not 32?”

“The hyung said so too… and when I looked it up on the internet, it said you were really 32…”

“…”

“You’re not?”

Right? No? I knew it! Jeonggwan’s expression was exactly like his mother’s when she exclaimed “I knew it!” upon hearing Seonjeong was Forbes’ daughter. The thought that at 32, it would be an impossible love even in fantasy was just an add-on.

But wow, looking at Won Junjae again, he’s incredibly handsome-. Thinking this, Jeonggwan took another bite of the tart. Dressed in a black striped three-piece suit for the party, Junjae’s appearance was truly national treasure level. So a great body can make even just wearing a suit sexy.

Jeonggwan didn’t hold back in examining Junjae up close.

“…Ha-.”

And Junjae, looking down at Jeonggwan, felt a mix of bewilderment and embarrassment. He had waited for what Jeonggwan would say, quickly chewing and swallowing the tart as if he had something urgent to say, but this was it? He let out a laugh of disbelief. All he wanted to ask was about age?

Moreover, whether this was real idiocy or just extreme lack of social awareness, he didn’t even blink when Junjae openly sneered at him, continuing to look him up and down. Finally, Junjae, increasingly bewildered by the persistent gaze that seemed to be evaluating him like a high-grade piece of meat, opened his mouth.

“What are you keep…”

“Uh… Jeonggwan…!”

However, his question about what Jeonggwan was looking at was cut off by another voice.

Jihoon, seemingly out of breath from running, blocked Junjae’s view of Jeonggwan with his body.

Junjae’s expression crumpled even further.

* * *

Jihoon had run over, panicking at the sight of Junjae with Jeonggwan from afar.

As he ran, all sorts of thoughts raced through his mind:

Junjae ordering Jeonggwan to be dragged out for eating all the party desserts.
Junjae saying he wanted to taste baby pig stew today and ordering Jeonggwan to be taken to the kitchen.

Having imagined every possible scenario in that short time, Jihoon arrived and immediately hid Jeonggwan behind him, blurting out whatever came to mind with a face as if he’d seen Medusa.

“Hyung…! Long, long time no see!”

“…”

“This is…! I mean, my part-, partner…!”

He blurted out “partner” thinking Jeonggwan wouldn’t be kicked out if he was someone Jihoon was seeing, but seeing Junjae’s eye crinkle even more at those words, he thought, “Ah, this isn’t right?” Right. Partner was too much…?

Feeling his blood run cold at the thought of Junjae openly saying his partner was below standard while Jeonggwan was listening, Jihoon racked his brain again. Partner… Sex partner? Investment partner…? Insurance partner…? Business part- Ah!

“Cafe! Cafe partner…!”

“…Cafe?”

After trying various words in front of “partner,” he blurted out what seemed least strange, and it appeared to be the right answer. Yes, this is the right answer…! Finally seeing Junjae’s crinkled eye slowly relax, Jihoon spoke again, his mind working overtime.

“I… I’m planning to open a dessert cafe… He’s my bakery partner. But he… He’s good at everything, but a bit clumsy with things like decor and plating… So to show him how parties do it… Since it’s our hotel’s party too… Killing two birds with one stone…”

True to his reputation for high EQ since childhood and often being called clever, Jihoon thought to himself, “Am I not a genius of eloquence?” as he spoke. And Junjae, listening to this language genius, looked back and forth between his cousin Jihoon and Jeonggwan, who had peeked his head out beside him, before turning away.

Phew…! Jihoon turned to Jeonggwan with a relieved expression. Then, with an urgency visible to anyone, he opened his mouth towards Jeonggwan.

“Hey, what did that hyung say…”

“Where are you opening it?”

“…!!!”

However, at the voice heard again, Jihoon spun around like a leaping trout.

Junjae, who they thought had left, had turned back to ask. But his expression said, ‘I’m not at all curious, I really don’t care what someone like you does. But I’ll ask once.’

“Huh…?”

“The cafe. Where are you opening it?”

And his eyes were directed not at Jihoon, but at Jeonggwan.

To Jihoon, that gaze towards Jeonggwan seemed to say that if they built a cafe somewhere he frequented and he had to encounter this, he really wouldn’t let it slide.

“Probably thinking of somewhere on the opposite side where not even a speck of dust would be seen even if a Won Electronics building collapsed.”

So, with the thought of not irritating Junjae, Jihoon stated firmly. As if to say don’t worry about it. With a cheerful face saying, “No problem at all!”

However, as if that wasn’t the right answer, Junjae’s eyes quickly turned fierce.

“…That’s good.”

Although the response was praise, that is.