* * *
After tucking Haejoo back into bed and confirming he was fast asleep, Minhyuk finally headed to the main office.
In truth, rather than the matter of Han Heeseong, he had wanted to see for himself just how much Haejoo’s body had recovered.
He had already sensed that Haejoo knew something about Han Heeseong.
It was inevitable; Haejoo’s behavior could only stem from the premise that he already knew who Han Heeseong was.
It wasn’t a lack of interest, but rather a natural indifference that came from feeling he didn’t need to know more.
Finding out exactly what Haejoo knew wouldn’t be difficult if Minhyuk set his mind to it, but for some reason, he wanted to hear it directly from Haejoo’s own lips.
It didn’t seem like a lie.
Although they had only recently become close, he had been observing the Grand Royal Concubine for a long time.
Given that history, it wasn’t hard to grasp his personality.
Yet, lately, a thought had been nagging at him: the closer he got to Cha Haejoo, the more certain he became that the man was hiding something.
Moreover, the secrets didn’t seem to be linked to the Cha family or the Prime Minister, but appeared to be something purely personal and deeply private.
It was a bizarre feeling—the more he learned, the further away Haejoo seemed to feel—and it left Minhyuk feeling inwardly slighted.
Minhyuk wanted to know everything about Cha Haejoo now, as he felt he should, but Haejoo would not permit it.
Cha Haejoo never showed his truly intimate inner self.
This fueled Minhyuk’s impatience.
He felt that everything about Cha Haejoo should belong to him, yet Haejoo’s habit of drawing lines he couldn’t cross was resentful.
However, there was one person who uniquely crossed those lines: Kang Hyunwook.
Minhyuk stood behind his desk and looked up at Kang Hyunwook, who was visibly tense.
Kang Hyunwook was currently Minhyuk’s greatest mystery.
The existence of this ordinary Beta was the biggest question mark.
Minhyuk set down the pen he was holding, leaned back in his chair, and stared openly at Hyunwook.
Under Minhyuk’s gaze—at once burning and cold—Hyunwook’s body stiffened further, his Adam’s apple bobbing as he swallowed hard.
He had reason to be nervous; since the Han Heeseong incident, Minhyuk had kept him waiting in the main office under the pretext of disciplinary action.
Upon close inspection, Kang Hyunwook’s mannerisms were, absurdly enough, identical to the Grand Royal Concubine’s.
‘How can their behavior be so exactly the same?’
It was as if they were people who had grown up together in the same environment.
Of course, that was impossible. Cha Haejoo had entered the palace at twelve and had never lived outside or met anyone, so there was no way he shared a background with Kang Hyunwook.
Though he was a Beta, his clean-cut face and physique were enough to pass for an Alpha.
Every time Minhyuk saw Hyunwook’s refined face, he was reminded of Haejoo, and a ball of fire seemed to rise in his chest.
However, he couldn’t find fault with him based on feelings alone.
Scolding him purely out of spite wouldn’t do any good.
“I wonder what it is… I could find out right now, but I don’t necessarily want to see it yet. Not yet…”
As he muttered to himself, the pupils of Hyunwook, who was watching him, wavered.
Seeing Hyunwook’s anxious face, Minhyuk sighed deeply and made up his mind. It was time to end this childish psychological punishment.
“Right. How did it feel, standing there watching me in the office for the past few days?”
It must have felt like death.
Why even ask?
Yet, he wanted to hear it.
If this was petty spite, he was willing to admit it.
A heavy silence fell for a moment as Minhyuk waited quietly for Hyunwook’s answer.
After a while, Hyunwook’s lips parted as if to break the silence.
“…I am sorry for failing to handle the matter properly, Your Majesty.”
“I’ve heard that every time you’ve come. Do you have anything else to say?”
“My skills were lacking. I thought I had mastered everything, but since it was my first time in such a situation, I failed to judge the circumstances. I will accept any punishment.”
That, too, was a repeated line.
Then again, what else would a man say to the Emperor?
It wasn’t as if they were on friendly terms.
“Anything? You say that without knowing what discipline I might hand down. Watch yourself. If I told you to die, would you?”
He saw Hyunwook bite his lip in surprise.
‘How naive.’
Kang Hyunwook was more innocent and simple than expected.
In this day and age, could an Emperor really just kill a person without a trial?
No matter how capital the offense, handling things that way would cause an uproar.
“For the time being, you cannot go to the Grand Royal Concubine’s quarters.”
“What? Ah, no. Your Majesty. I was wrong. I will serve the Palace Master better. So please…”
It wasn’t as if he was being killed, yet the fact that he reacted so violently to being barred from seeing the Grand Royal Concubine bothered Minhyuk.
It had been the same when he first witnessed their rapport; it was irritating him to no end.
He could only scoff at the reaction—since when were they so inseparable?
Based on his observations, there was no sexual attraction whatsoever between the two.
Rather, it looked like a bond of siblings or comrades-in-arms.
But that made it even more ridiculous.
How could two people who had just met feel such brotherhood or camaraderie…
“I am the Grand Royal Concubine’s guardian. Therefore, I make the decisions. You are to step down from his personal security for the time being.”
As the order to step down was given, Hyunwook’s face distorted slightly in distress.
For a mere bodyguard to fail so miserably at controlling his expression before the Emperor.
He looked like he was about to cry.
“I never originally intended for you to be the Palace Master’s personal guard. Not if it hadn’t been for the Grand Royal Concubine’s impulsive behavior. But you cannot avoid responsibility for this incident. I don’t even want to imagine the horrific situation that would have unfolded if someone with a weapon had lunged at him like that. You feel the same, don’t you? Gain more experience. For now, stay by my side and do whatever tasks I assign.”
Minhyuk gestured with his chin toward the documents scattered on his desk.
Hyunwook’s eyes wavered, clearly failing to grasp the meaning of those words.
“You don’t understand? Working by my side and doing what I tell you—that is the disciplinary action for this incident.”
“…Your Majesty?”
“Why, is it unexpected? You probably thought I’d lock you in a dungeon and torture you on a rack, so you think I’m letting you off easy, don’t you? But you might end up thinking the torture would have been better. Working with me is no ordinary task. As you can see.”
He had decided to keep Kang Hyunwook close.
By keeping the man who annoyed and bothered him the most right by his side, he felt he might finally learn something about Haejoo.
For reasons he couldn’t fathom, the person Haejoo currently trusted and relied on most wasn’t Minhyuk or Hanbin—it was this man, Kang Hyunwook.
So, he would keep Kang Hyunwook close.
Of course, he would eventually return him to Haejoo’s side. He would watch him alone for a few days and then send him back.
After all, the two of them had to meet occasionally for Minhyuk to find the answers he wanted.
The reason for their closeness, the reason Haejoo relied on him…
He decided to keep Kang Hyunwook near to discover all of it.
“Ugh, so heavy. Seriously!”
Feeling a pressure on my chest in the middle of the night, I found the source and pushed it aside.
I can’t sleep deeply because Joo Minhyuk’s arm is constantly hugging me tight.
I finally managed to fall asleep after being worn out, too.
But like a boomerang, Joo Minhyuk’s arm just returned to rest over my chest.
‘Is he actually asleep?’
I lifted my head and stared intensely at his face.
His steady, even breathing and the way he looked while sleeping made it clear to anyone that he was out cold.
I suppose he’s tired.
After he… hmm.
Ever since we spent our first night together, Joo Minhyuk and I have been like unbridled colts; we catch fire the moment we see each other.
The moment his work ends, he scurries over here, releasing pheromones and fumbling over my body.
It’s only natural that I, who am crazy for his pheromones, can’t reject his touch.
Lately, I’ve been realizing just how much vitality a pair of early-twenty-somethings can have when an Alpha and Omega first discover sex.
Starting from the drawing room sofa, moving through the bedroom and the bathtub, all the way to the shower stall.
After stirring up the entire palace with frantic, intense lovemaking, our strength hits zero, and we fall asleep as if we’ve fainted.
It was surprising that this could happen while we were in our right minds, not in a rut or heat.
I naturally snuggled into Joo Minhyuk’s embrace as if I had been an Omega from the very beginning.
After a bout of passion, I realized that “body-attachment” (sexual chemistry) is a terrifying thing.
“…But looking at the way he watches me, I don’t think it’s just physical. It’s almost like…”
It’s almost like he likes me.
His gaze was tender and full of love—enough to make me fall into that illusion.
I gave up on moving his arm and turned on my side, leaning my body against his chest.
Even in his sleep, Joo Minhyuk hugged me tight.
I liked this time—being held by him after the act—even more than the sex itself.
Joo Minhyuk was always by my side and never left the spot next to me.
I liked that.
The feeling of not being alone.
I hadn’t realized how much that could fulfill a person’s emotions.
‘So this is why everyone dates?’
Well, in my case, it’s a marriage.
Joo Minhyuk told me to trust him.
He said that since our relationship had changed, I should trust him.
It’s already been several years since I came to this world.
I’m sorry to the author, but this is my world now; the flow of the story has changed completely, and the possibility of Joo Minhyuk stabbing me in the back has vanished.
As long as I keep my wits about me and don’t follow in the footsteps of the original Grand Royal Concubine, there will be no future where I die.
Since the meeting between Joo Minhyuk and the “Yeonghwa Palace” (Han Heeseong) has gone weirdly off-track, perhaps I don’t even need to try to set them up anymore.
This is a night where I feel certain that living a life relying on Joo Minhyuk like this will be just fine.
* * *
Hehe