Chapter 19: Unforeseen Danger

The phone was turned off and went straight to voicemail….

“……!”

Hyunjin’s phone was completely off.

Hyunwoo stared down at the screen, his face pale.

Of all days, he had forgotten his suppressant on the scheduled heat day, and now there was no contact.

The worst-case scenarios ran through Hyunwoo’s mind, and he clenched his jaw tightly.

“Hyung, it seems Juhyunjin didn’t come to school today.”

“What? Is that true?”

Seunghyuk approached with a serious expression after receiving answers from his classmates.

Hyunwoo turned to him in surprise.

“Yes, I didn’t have any major classes today, so I couldn’t see Juhyunjin. And the classmates who have overlapping general courses with him didn’t see him either.”

“Then where on earth could he be….”

He didn’t go to school today, and he hadn’t returned home either, with his phone turned off….

Did his heat start on the way to school, preventing him from going?

If someone had helped, he would have been taken to a hospital.

No, if that were the case, by now he would have already received his suppressant and calmed down at the hospital.

Or at least, someone at the hospital would have contacted his guardian using Hyunjin’s phone.

Hyunwoo suspected the situation was worse than he initially thought.

It was highly likely someone had taken Hyunjin and was deliberately keeping him from returning.

Hyunwoo’s face turned pale.

Should he contact Sungyun?

With his help, they could locate Hyunjin somehow.

Hyunwoo immediately dialed Sungyun.

• Young master? What is the matter at this hour?

“Director, it’s….”

Hyunwoo urgently explained the situation.

Even Sungyun, initially puzzled, soon realized the gravity of the matter.

He spoke in a serious tone.

• Understood. I will look into it, so please wait a moment.

“Yes, please hurry.”

After ending the call with Sungyun, Hyunwoo let out a long breath.

Sungyun would find Hyunjin by any means necessary, but Hyunwoo still couldn’t help worrying.

“It’ll be fine, hyung. Nothing will happen.”

“Yeah… I guess so.”

Hyunjin was the protagonist’s partner in the novel.

This wasn’t a tragic story, so there was no reason for something terrible to happen to him suddenly.

Hyunwoo pressed his throbbing head with his hands.

Had something like this happened in the original story?

In Omega verse novels, it was a cliché for incidents to occur because of the protagonist’s heat cycle or the actions of Alphas.

But the protagonist being left at home while Hyunjin’s heat occurs outside?

Hyunwoo glanced at Seunghyuk beside him in disbelief.

Why had it come to this?

A sinister feeling crept over him.

He worried that, once again, some other guy might try to take Hyunjin.

Of course, he wasn’t worrying about himself trying to meddle with Hyunjin’s relationships before regression….

‘…Wait, a secondary Alpha?’

Why had he forgotten?

This was the novel’s world.

Hyunjin had other secondary Alphas around him besides the protagonist, Seunghyuk.

Before regression, Hyunwoo had chosen the one with the best personality to be paired with Hyunjin.

‘Hwang Dokyung… why did I forget about him?’

He was a secondary Alpha in the novel and, like Seunghyuk, someone close to Hyunjin.

He taught the general education class Hyunjin was taking.

Although older, he was the most dependable among the non-Seunghyuk Alphas, and Hyunwoo had actively tried to pair him with Hyunjin.

He was also the one who had eliminated the stalker attached to Hyunjin before regression.

Could it be that Hyunjin was with him now?

Even if before regression he had tried to pair them, this time Hyunwoo had barely considered Dokyung at all.

‘No, think about that later.’

If there was even a slight possibility, he had to act.

Hyunwoo turned to Seunghyuk and asked,

“Do you happen to have Instructor Hwang Dokyung’s contact info?”

“Instructor Hwang Dokyung?”

“Yes, the one for the general education class Hyunjin is taking….”

Before regression, he had investigated to get his contact info, but now he couldn’t recall.

Seunghyuk gave a puzzled look, then pulled out his phone.

“I’ll ask the classmates in that class.”

“Good, thanks.”

Although Hyunwoo’s sudden request for a stranger’s contact info was suspicious, Seunghyuk willingly contacted the classmates.

Soon, he sent Dokyung’s number to Hyunwoo’s anxious phone.

“Here.”

“Thanks.”

Hyunwoo stared at the number.

It seemed familiar.

It might be a false lead, but his instincts said Hyunjin was highly likely with this man.

Hyunwoo made up his mind and called Hwang Dokyung.

“Ah, welcome.”

“…….”

Hyunwoo silently observed the man who bowed politely to him.

Hwang Dokyung.

He looked exactly the same as before regression.

Even the last time Hyunwoo saw him, he had a neat, youthful appearance.

Overall, he looked younger than his age.

So even knowing he was dating Hyunjin, Hyunwoo felt no significant discomfort.

With Hyunjin beside him, he seemed roughly the same age.

Hyunwoo nodded slightly at him.

“I’m Juhyunwoo, Hyunjin’s older brother. I came because I heard Hyunjin is here….”

“Yes, that’s right. On the way to school today, his heat started. Luckily, my lecture ended early, so I could help him.”

“…….”

Hyunwoo quietly observed Dokyung’s friendly smile.

His polite behavior and speech were just like before regression, yet Hyunwoo felt uneasy.

Trying to manage his expression, he spoke.

“Thank you for helping my brother, but taking him to the hospital would have been better than bringing him to your home.”

“Ah, Hyunjin dislikes going to hospitals.

Anyway, I’m a Beta, so I can’t sense his pheromones.

I brought him here so he could rest comfortably.”

“…I see. Thank you for the trouble.”

“It’s nothing. I was just lucky to find him in time.”

The reason Hyunwoo had supported Dokyung over the other secondary Alphas was that he was a Beta.

Being an Alpha himself, Hyunwoo knew how obsessive and bothersome Alphas could be.

In BL novels, secondary Alphas other than Seunghyuk often had terrible personalities.

There was no way he could leave Hyunjin with them.

So he had strongly encouraged Dokyung.

Could that influence still be present, allowing Hyunjin to be paired with him?

Fortunately, judging by his appearance, nothing happened to Hyunjin during the heat.

Hyunwoo asked Dokyung cautiously,

“Where is Hyunjin?”

“Ah….”

Dokyung glanced toward Seunghyuk standing right behind Hyunwoo.

He said with an awkward expression,

“Perhaps he should stay here until his heat ends.

It’s better than returning to a place with two Alphas.”

“Still….”

“I’m a Beta, and I won’t be home on the weekend.

If you don’t trust me, I can’t help it.”

“Hmm….”

Dokyung’s suggestion was reasonable.

Being a lecturer, he wouldn’t touch Hyunjin during heat.

More importantly, he wasn’t the type to do such things.

The problem was Hyunjin had to experience this critical event with Seunghyuk, not a secondary Alpha.

Unfortunately, today’s schedule didn’t overlap with Seunghyuk’s, so he ended up with the secondary Alpha.

It was disappointing.

“Then I’ll just give him the suppressant and leave.

It’s tailored to him, so it works better than others.”

“Hyunjin is in the room at the end of the hallway.”

Hyunwoo nodded at Dokyung and turned to Seunghyuk.

Seunghyuk crossed his arms, standing as if waiting here.

Hyunwoo looked at him persistently, but Seunghyuk’s expression remained firm.

He seemed unwilling to move an inch.

Eventually, Hyunwoo gave up and walked slowly.

The reason he was going to Hyunjin, even in heat, was to ensure he was safe.

He had taken his own suppressant just in case.

Still, he couldn’t be sure if he could handle facing a heat-stricken Omega.

After confirming Hyunjin was okay, he only had to deliver the medicine quickly and leave.

Hyunwoo muttered to himself.

Knock knock.

At the room at the end of the hallway, Hyunwoo raised his hand and knocked.

No response came from inside.

He waited briefly and carefully opened the door.

“Hyunjin?”

“…….”

The room was extremely dark.

Hyunwoo blinked, then grimaced at the sudden rush of pheromones.

“Ugh….”

It was far stronger than the lingering pheromones in the house.

The pheromones of a heat-stricken Alpha Omega were more intense than Hyunwoo had imagined.

“…Hyung?”

“Hyunjin, are you okay?”

Still able to move in the room because Hyunwoo’s pheromone level wasn’t high.

Not overly passionate, but perhaps because he originally lived in a world without Omegaverse, he was somewhat insensitive to others’ pheromones.

He barely restrained the sudden urges and approached Hyunjin.

“Here, I brought your medicine.”

“Haa….”

“Once you take it, your heat will end soon.

Contact me when you’ve calmed down.”

“…….”

Hyunjin’s phone had simply died from no charge.

He’d be able to borrow a charger once he regained his senses.

Hyunwoo placed the medicine bottle on the bedside table next to him.

Then he quickly tried to leave the room.

“Hyung… don’t go….”

“……!”

Hyunjin reached out and grabbed Hyunwoo’s arm as he turned to leave.