“What? Trait?”
“You can take it online, so I’ll send you the link. For the ID, enter your employee number, and the password is your date of birth, Sangho-ssi. You should take it early in the year if possible? If you do it at year-end, I heard it switches to group education because people crowd in.”
At the supervisor’s words, Sangho nodded for now. Since it’s quite a large institution, they must be thorough about mandatory education and such. Come to think of it, it seemed like there was something written about mandatory education in the employment guide. It said he had to take a total of four hours, one hour for each education. More than that, the other educations were ones he’d heard of somewhere, but trait accident prevention education was an education he was hearing for the first time.
Well… I’ll know when I take it.
The supervisor fiddled with his phone right there and sent him the education platform link via text message. It was an obvious site called ‘Korea University Legally Required Education.’ I should play it on the computer when I get home. Thinking that, Sangho bowed in thanks to the cleaning supervisor and headed home from work.
“…This can’t be real.”
Sangho’s hands, sitting in front of the computer desk in his studio apartment, trembled. On the monitor, a ‘Trait Accident Prevention Education’ video was playing. Though it was a crude educational video that seemed to be a childish illustrated slide with voiceover, made who knows when, its content was too shocking.
『Most of humanity consists of betas, but there may be colleagues with alpha and omega traits around you. Of course, through suppressants, many people can lead ordinary lives, but if physical immunity weakens, traits can naturally manifest strongly, so understanding and consideration between colleagues is necessary.』
『Alphas have overwhelming physical abilities and brains. In most situations, problems don’t occur, but if a sudden rut comes, nearby omega colleagues can be in danger, so you must immediately separate the space and give them time to administer suppressants! During this period, alphas can show aggression even to betas, so please let them stabilize in a space of at least 16㎡.』
『Omegas have bodies that can bear children. Likewise, the heat cycle, which is their estrus period, can be controlled with suppressants, but depending on circumstances, an acute heat can come. During this period, omegas are not physically dangerous, but due to sudden sexual urges, they may request sexual relations from those around them. However, if you have sexual relations with an omega in this state, pregnancy can occur, so please administer suppressants first and separate the space. It’s also good to insert sex toys for omegas who are struggling. For sudden heats, active consideration from colleagues is needed to avoid contact with alphas as much as possible. Alphas can be enchanted by omega pheromones and rush at them, and may attempt imprinting, so be sure to lock the separated space.』
Sangho, who’d been blankly staring at the hour-long video, panicked even after the video ended, unable to press the exit button. Men can get pregnant? His heart pounded like crazy and cold sweat flowed. Come to think of it, strange conversations he’d thought nothing of until now came to mind.
‘I’m a beta. It’s safe…’
‘Is that type of alpha your preference?’
Sangho, who’d furrowed his brow, pulled at his hair. What Wonha had said to him was as if he’d said it with Sangho having omega traits in mind. Confused, Sangho suddenly took out the wallet from his pocket. With trembling hands, he took out his resident registration card that he rarely looked at. The photo he always saw, and his date of birth. The second part of the resident number he was now used to. And on the back was written ‘Omega.’
“Aaah!”
Sangho threw the resident registration card to the floor, almost in a panic. The plastic card fell to the floor with a thud sound.
“…This can’t be. There’s no way.”
As if hyperventilating, Sangho’s breathing became rough. So then, that manhwa. In that BL manhwa with Jang Wonha, Han Kyungoh, and Nam Dohyun, did such content appear? Since it was a creative work, like in martial arts novels, there could be settings like energy centers or elixirs. What was certain was the fact that the stalker janitor ‘assaulted’ Wonha. So then, if he assaulted Wonha, wouldn’t Wonha have been at least the one on the bottom? Wonha is really pretty-looking after all. And then there was a scene of sleeping with Nam Dohyun next.
“Huff… hoo…”
Gradually Sangho took deep breaths to find his composure. In that manhwa, it didn’t say what trait ‘Sangho’ had. However, his plain face and scrawny appearance looked exactly like himself.
When he calmed down a bit, Sangho started searching for omega in the search bar. The dictionary description said they generally look pretty and feel sexual urges easily. It said they feel alpha pheromones, or emit pheromones that seduce alphas.
Come to think of it, during the three months since Sangho became ‘Sangho,’ he’d never once felt a sexual urge. He’d never smelled pheromones, which were supposed to have specific scents.
Something must be wrong. There was no story about Han Kyungoh’s injury in the manhwa. Something’s… gone wrong. It’s becoming a bit different from the manhwa content.
Perhaps ‘Sangho’ was really an omega, but his trait changed when he possessed the body.
With that thought, Sangho quickly started searching for more materials about omegas. There were many pornographic videos, but Sangho clicked mainly on materials made by hospitals to look at omega characteristics.
First, omegas must take suppressants once a week. In times when there were no suppressants, omegas had virtually no human rights and lived as sex slaves, the content said. They went into heat periodically and got pregnant easily, so their lifespan wasn’t very long either. However, with the development of suppressants and the ability to control heat cycles, the estrus cycle could be reduced to about once a year. But without taking suppressants, the heat cycle naturally came once a month.
I’ve never had that. I didn’t even masturbate.
Moreover, Sangho couldn’t feel the pheromones that alphas and omegas supposedly felt at all. It said that when you smell pheromones, each person has a specific scent, and alphas and omegas seduce each other. Kyungoh was definitely an alpha, so he would have his own pheromone scent. But Sangho had never particularly felt sexually attracted to Han Kyungoh or thought he had any scent.
On the other hand, betas couldn’t feel alpha and omega pheromones at all and had no heat cycles. It was exactly the same as Sangho’s symptoms until now.
“Ha…”
A sigh burst out. Sangho leaned back in his chair and pressed both hands firmly on his eye sockets. I’m not an omega. I’m sure. Sangho muttered that to himself.
More than that, Wonha said he was a beta. Since Kyungoh said he was an alpha, Nam Dohyun was also likely an alpha with high probability. Then in that manhwa, were two alphas and one beta in a love triangle?
Only then did Sangho understand why Wonha had shown so much wariness when he brought up Kyungoh. Beta Wonha was interested in alpha Kyungoh, but Wonha might have mistaken him for an omega and thought he was interfering between the two. Since alphas and omegas seduce each other with some kind of pheromone, beta Wonha might feel some sense of alienation…
“The rehabilitation exercises… I should stop now.”
Sangho muttered, recalling Wonha’s sulking expression. Still, we’re friends. He didn’t want to see Wonha looking sad. I feel bad for Kyungoh, but it can’t be helped. Sangho held his throbbing head and tried hard to lie down on the mat to sleep.
***
― Beep, clocking in.
Sangho, who clocked in at dawn the next day, entered the gym briskly with a resolute expression. The lights were on on the first floor, but Kyungoh wasn’t there. Come to think of it, there was a mattress in the fourth-floor sports storage room, and it seemed he’d gone up to get it to exercise. Sangho quickly moved his steps to the fourth floor. The plan was to help with rehabilitation exercises one last time today and say it would be difficult to exercise starting tomorrow.
As expected, Kyungoh was picking up the mattress in the sports storage room. When Sangho entered the storage room, Kyungoh turned his head to look.
“Student Kyungoh.”
“…”
The still taciturn man silently waited for what Sangho had to say.
“That, I’ll help with rehabilitation just today and I don’t think I can do it anymore.”
“…”
Kyungoh, who’d been staring at Sangho intently, put down the mattress he was holding. He seemed to be carefully choosing what to say.
“Is it because of my pheromones?”
After a slight silence, at the words Kyungoh uttered, Sangho made a shocked expression.
“What? I’m a beta though?”
“…?”
Kyungoh didn’t say anything particular, but his expression was telling. It was an expression that naturally thought Sangho was an omega. Sangho somehow felt anxious and nervous.
“I’m a beta. I don’t even know what pheromone smell is. I’ve never had a heat cycle either.”
“Honey… castella.”
“What?”
“It’s a castella scent.”
Kyungoh touched his nose with an awkward expression. At that sight, Sangho felt like a stone dropped with a thud in his heart.
“What are you talking about? What smell?”
“…”
“You’re saying I’m an omega? Release your pheromones right now.”
When Sangho pressed him, Kyungoh subtly frowned. It was an expression of difficulty. At that face, Sangho felt even more impatient.
I emit a pheromone scent? Really?
The moment suspicion sprouted, he felt his ears become muffled and his vision darken. As dizziness like falling into a swamp struck him while his head spun round and round, Sangho shook his head convulsively to shake off the distracting thoughts.
