Chapter 6: Then Marry Me

“What are you doing? Aren’t you coming in?”

Something had changed.

After slipping past Go Ha-jin, who had been blocking the entryway, Chae Woo-seok casually turned on the lights and seated himself on the sofa.

Then he crooked a finger at Ha-jin, who stood frozen in the doorway.

This wasn’t the time to nitpick over small things, but Ha-jin couldn’t help feeling irritated that Woo-seok had walked inside without even taking off his black dress shoes.

Not to mention, acting like he owned the place.

“Here.”

Ha-jin hesitated.

He didn’t know how the situation had derailed like this, but one thing was clear, the plan had gone seriously wrong.

The first thought that came to mind, the instant his mind started working again, was to run.

“Come here.”

The moment his gaze locked with Woo-seok’s, that thought was wiped clean.

Those eyes were sharp, like a wild predator let loose inside a house, pinning Ha-jin’s legs in place.

Omega or beta, ordinary alpha or not, no one could withstand the feral pressure of a dominant alpha like Chae Woo-seok when he released his aura in earnest.

“If I move, you-”

Woo-seok didn’t even finish the sentence.

As if possessed, Ha-jin’s legs moved.

No, this was closer to desperate flailing.

He crossed the short distance in a rush and stopped in front of Woo-seok, who was lounging comfortably with his shoe propped on the table as if it were his own home.

After calling him over, Woo-seok said nothing for a long moment.

He reached into his jacket, took out a cigarette, and lit it.

The smoke he exhaled poured straight into Ha-jin’s face.

“Aren’t you going to do it?”

“…Do what?”

“Make excuses. No matter how I look at it, this is pretty different from the omega in the rumors. This isn’t Ritz Forest, is it.”

It was the first time.

In all his life, after playing countless roles, his identity had been exposed completely, this helplessly.

The Ritz Forest apartment Woo-seok had dropped him off at earlier, the one Ha-jin claimed was his home, was a place he’d never lived in.

He’d only toured the interior once, pretending to be interested in buying it.

“…How did you know?”

They said giving up made things easier.

Once Ha-jin accepted that everything was over, that this job was blown, his mind oddly calmed.

Whether it was the smoke drifting toward him or his sour mood, he suddenly craved a cigarette too.

He plucked one from Woo-seok’s pack and slipped it into his mouth without thinking.

After hours of forced abstinence, the taste sliding down his throat felt strangely sweet.

For the first time, it felt like he could breathe.

“I don’t like sharing cigarettes.”

Ha-jin dropped the convenience store bag from his wrist onto the floor.

Just moments ago his heart had been pounding like it would burst, but the nicotine helped him settle.

His cover was blown, there was no changing that, and overpowering Woo-seok or escaping was impossible.

Trying anything physical against a dominant alpha would be pure stupidity.

Woo-seok seemed to know that too, never losing his relaxed composure.

He had completely claimed the space Ha-jin knew so well, like it belonged to him.

Ha-jin waited, careful not to irritate him, for an answer.

“Doctor Mark.”

“…What about him?”

“There’s no way you could’ve taken his class during the years you were in school. He was already dead.”

That couldn’t be right.

It was true that Mark wasn’t listed anymore, but according to the profile, his classes still existed during the period Ha-jin was supposedly enrolled.

“He got into a traffic accident at the start of the semester, was hospitalized for about a year, then died. Look it up if you don’t believe me.”

Damn it.

Korean conglomerates were notorious for being meticulous.

Ha-jin had prepared for every possible question, down to the smallest detail.

He’d studied so thoroughly he could picture America in his head without ever having been there.

“Ha…”

And that thoroughness had come back to bite him.

He knew too much.

If he’d just claimed he didn’t remember clearly, maybe things would’ve gone differently.

Too late for regrets now.

“…So what are you going to do?”

Woo-seok shifted, crushed the cigarette out on the glass table, and leaned forward with his elbows on his knees, looking up at Ha-jin.

Ha-jin was the one standing, yet it felt like he was the one being looked down on, tossed onto the floor.

“Well? I’ll hear you out first. Which part of you is the real Go Ha-jin?”

The table wasn’t expensive anyway.

Ha-jin stubbed out his own cigarette on it and sat down on the floor, cracking open a beer he bought from the convenience store.

No lie would save him now.

Woo-seok was sharper than he’d anticipated.

A failed con could be discarded.

“It’s all fake.”

But Ha-jin had something to cling to.

Woo-seok could’ve gone to the police, or sent someone to deal with him.

Instead, he came here himself.

He was asking questions.

That meant he wanted something.

“Be specific.”

“Princeton. Growing up in the States. All of it… ha, it was all a scam.”

Even after smoking, he wanted another.

None of it had ever truly belonged to him, yet it felt as though everything he’d had was being stripped away with that admission.

Heir to a real estate empire.

A dominant omega, Go Ha-jin.

Losing that identity stung.

“A scam, huh. So you were running a job. Target?”

“…You.”

“Why?”

Why indeed.

Money.

Disinterest in the company.

Fondness for omegas.

A reckless playboy who caused scandals daily.

Wasn’t it obvious?

“Money.”

“Planning a scam marriage?”

“Are you insane? I’m not even a dominant omega.”

He’d never planned to actually marry.

Just drag out a long relationship, bleed him dry under the guise of wedding preparations.

Even if it reached the bedroom, Ha-jin was confident Woo-seok wouldn’t realize he was practically a beta-level recessive omega.

He had leverage, Woo-seok’s secret.

“So it was all fake.”

“…Pretty much.”

Woo-seok let out a short laugh.

He’d never imagined a con artist would dare pull something like this on him.

Worse, the act had been nearly flawless.

Etiquette, knowledge befitting the status, even economics, politics, and art, everything had lined up perfectly.

“Do you even know who I am?”

“How could I not.”

Woo-seok stood and stepped closer, bending down toward Ha-jin.

“W-wait, ngh-!”

Without any consideration, Woo-seok grabbed Ha-jin by the collar.

Despite his deceptively delicate appearance, Ha-jin was stubborn, but he couldn’t resist being slammed flat onto his back.

When Woo-seok straddled his torso, Ha-jin froze.

This was real danger.

“No. If you did, you wouldn’t have pulled a stunt like this on me.”

“…What, what do you mean…”

Alphas were stronger than betas, betas stronger than omegas, that much he knew.

But facing a dominant alpha for the first time was beyond imagination.

It wasn’t just strength; it was a predator’s instinct to dominate.

Woo-seok’s faint smile no longer looked like a smile.

“If you knew, you wouldn’t be this cocky.”

Woo-seok sat astride Ha-jin’s chest and unbuttoned his jacket, pulling something from the inner pocket.

Click.

A blade sprang out from a silver handle the length of a finger, gleaming sharply.

Why was something like that tucked into a suit pocket, Ha-jin couldn’t begin to guess.

“And you’ve got some nerve for someone who did nothing right.”

“…”

“Scamming’s a habit, huh? Don’t even know how to feel remorse.”

The knife moved.

Slowly, toward the center of Hajin’s brow, the tip pressed lightly against his skin.

It didn’t hurt, but Hajin’s breath hitched.

One twitch and it would pierce straight through.

“N-no…”

‘I won’t do it again.’

The words never made it past his throat.

Ha-jin had been conning people since he was young, but being exposed like this was new.

His composure, what had carried him through every crisis, rumbled into near panic.

“Do you have family?”

“…No.”

Woo-seok remained perfectly calm.

He flipped the blade and traced Ha-jin’s face with the blunt edge, from brow to nose, then pressed the tip lightly against the lips he’d once called pretty.

The resilience of them was clear even through the knife.

Perhaps that was why.

Looking down at the stiff, terrified Ha-jin, Woo-seok felt an inappropriate urge.

He wanted to see tears spill from those wide eyes.

Wanted to draw red blood from those red lips.

Red seemed like it would suit him.

“No family. So you’re alone.”

The blade slid again, past his jaw, down his throat, stopping at the hollow between his collarbones.

Ha-jin’s hand shot up reflexively.

“Want to test strength with me?”

Grabbing Woo-seok’s wrist did nothing.

His other hand twisted Ha-jin’s arm effortlessly.

“I-I’m sorry! I really am!”

Woo-seok examined Ha-jin’s wrist as if deciding whether to sever it, completely uninterested in the apology.

“Doesn’t feel sincere. Maybe losing a hand would teach you.”

He pinned Ha-jin’s wrist to the floor and brought the blade down over it.

Woo-seok didn’t have such hobbies, but watching Ha-jin tremble was amusing.

To Ha-jin, the smiling man looked like a demon.

“No family, so if you die, no one’ll know. Right?”

“…What?”

“Con artists don’t have friends either.”

This wasn’t just a playboy.

This was a psychopath.

Maybe Woo-seok was the omega serial killer in the news.

A man who smiled while talking about murder couldn’t be sane.

“P-please… please spare me!”

Ha-jin should’ve run the moment he was exposed.

Anything would’ve been better than this.

His voice shook, tears finally welling in his eyes, lips trembling.

“Want me to spare you?”

Woo-seok didn’t bother hiding his smile.

The trembling omega, no, the con artist, beneath him was fascinating.

Someone entirely new to his life.

“…Y-yes…”

Ha-jin felt relief flood him.

Fear was real, but instinct moved faster.

The tears were forced out with effort; when fear was too intense, they didn’t come easily.

He looked up through wet lashes, certain those tears would save his life again.

“Then marry me.”

The words fell like a verdict.