Chapter Text
ִֶָ𓂃 ࣪˖ ִֶָ🐢་༘࿐
“Let me go, hyung, and please! please just answer my question, where have you been?!”
Vernon flinched when Chan swatted his reaching hands away from him, who was obviously fed up with his silence, before steadying himself by leaning slightly, really slightly, against the man behind him, but something inside Vernon ineluctably cracked.
He studied the man more closely behind Chan. His features bore a faint resemblance to omega. But from the scent clinging to him—Vodka and Amber—mingling softly with Chan's upset scent, Vernon knew that the man was undeniably an alpha.
“And what happened to your face, huh? Who hurt you? Where were you?”
Chan's continuous rattled questions caught his full attention again. The younger omega’s eyes were shining with tears. He knew him for so long. He knew the indication of those gaze—anger, but more like with a hint of deep concern.
Chan's eyes averted to the man behind him, which he didn't even know personally, not really.
“And who is this man? What, you were with him the whole week? Yesterday's our fucking anniversary, hyung, did you seriously forget that?” The younger asked again, blinking with a hard, harsh tone.
They both knew he could forget most things, if not everything, but that. He could never forget about their most important day of the year. It's just that…everything wasn't going the way he wanted this time.
Upon hearing the last question, he instantly felt the irritation running through his veins, for a split second, his mind couldn't wrap around Chan's audacity to question him when there's also a man, an alpha even, hovering near him like some protective mate. Like Vernon's not the current boyfriend.
He looked again at the alpha. The way he looked at the younger omega, it's as if he wanted to shield him from Vernon, it was scrutinizing, and Vernon wanted nothing but to punch him across the face.
But it seemed like one alpha wasn't enough to make him feel excessively furious and insecure, because a towering figure emerged from the shadow, as if to challenge Vernon's possessive omega even though the man's entire demeanor was calm and totally unfazed. Hands crossing against his chest, just steadily assessing the situation.
Oh now there's two.
He was annoyed even if he knew deep down, he knew these people meant no harm, Chan talked about them all the time: 'Hyung, I told Seungkwan-hyung and his pack about you a lot and they said they wanted to meet you.'
And he wasn't that petty if only he didn't dwell too much about his insecurity, in fact, he's been looking forward to getting to know these people and show his sincere gratitude for how good they were to his Chan. If only this night never happened, then maybe they were in a different place and ambiance, over a cup of tea or coffee.
But alas, fate loves twisting his life a lot.
Though despite everything, he still wanted to explain everything to Chan—he was his childhood best friend after all that just leveled up to boyfriend, and now his soon to be—hopefully—mate. They've been planning to mark each other right after Chan's graduation. Which was three weeks away.
But now—
Now everything seemed about to go down the drain.
He came home from a very disgusting and treacherous territory, where dead bodies and bloods were soaking the floor he had left. He managed to change and erase the sour and rotten smell clinging to him prior this to avoid scaring Chan. And he was too focused on Chan that he didn't realize someone was actually following him. Desperately, his only goal tonight was to get the younger omega and run away with him. Away from everyone. Away from pain.
But something about Chan's eyes was telling him something different. Entirely different from what he was anticipating.
And worse, one of the syndicate's puppets succeeded in tailing him, exactly the man behind him that he didn't even had the chance to look at properly. And because of that, which was worse than the actual worse, yet somehow better, perhaps, was the fact that he might have started to consider that Chan would actually be safer with the two men and the rest of their pack members.
He didn't know them personally, but from the way they looked at Chan, and even though the bitterness and taste in his mouth was slowly spreading inside him by just looking at it, he's certain they can be a safe place for Chan. Alphas. More threatening to the enemy and less danger to Chan. A pack—more dominant than an omega like both of them.
But still, maybe, just maybe, he could protect Chan in his own way, right?
He was about to open his mouth when he felt a hand on his arm squeezing it tightly.
He froze.
Two strikes.
A warning: Say anything stupid and they will die.
A cold sensation runs throughout his spine. But he remained expressionless, suppressing his anxious scent.
His protective instinct towards Chan intensified. Something rang a bell in his mind. A different method, but still a protection. Hopefully.
Chan's safety above all.
You failed to protect your sister, now you have to protect the only person left in your life.
Chan's safety above all.
“Hyung, who the fuck is this man?” Chan repeated, his tone was lower now, yet more firm than ever.
But then, instead of alleviating the tension, Vernon huffed loudly. A mocking one. He watched Chan's brows twitching in anger.
“Does it matter? It looks like you're about to form your own pack, Chan-ah.”
Chan looked at him with bewilderment.
“What nonsense are you saying?!”
He almost flinched again when the man against Chan's back growled, as if Vernon was an insane person to say that.
He is. He knows he's on the verge of insanity.
“Kwan-ah, don't.” The taller man meters away from them chided with a steady but firm voice. Enough to shut the man behind Chan.
Still, Vernon ignored them.
Chan's eyes were unreadable now.
The grip of the man on Vernon's arm tightened again. Another warning. He wanted to scream, it felt like the man could sense when he was about to crack, as if he knew how easily he folds when it comes to Chan.
The air paused.
Then the words that came out of his mouth next tasted bitter, a metallic acrid taste. Disgusting and sickening.
Just purely revolting.
“Tell me, Chan-ah, were they good in bed?”
The air in the parking lot seemed to freeze. It did, for real.
“Yah! Watch your fucking mouth—”
“Choi Seungkwan.” The taller alpha’s voice was hard now. Low. Strained. Seungkwan recoiled instantly.
Vernon remained his eyes on Chan.
And there it was.
The younger omega’s hard feature cracked. Pale. Stunned. Devastated. Completely speechless. Vernon watched the pain crossing his face. He felt so uncomfortable under his intense, painful scrutiny, but he faced it. He had to.
I hurt him.
I just fucking hurt him.
I fucking hurt the only person that trusted me with his everything.
And before he could breathe or utter a word again, a loud impact erupted through the stillness of the place.
His head snapped sideways as he felt a burning sensation across his right face.
Chan slapped him.
After the ringing bell on his ears, all he could hear now was Chan's ragged and uneven breath.
He looked up at him slowly.
He wished he didn't.
He really wished he didn't.
Those emotions in Chans's eyes, the last time Vernon saw them was when Chan's father killed his mother. Brutal. Unforgiving.
And they both knew that what he just uttered wasn't just a simple insult, it was a fucking trauma. Those words were stated by Chan's father before he killed his mother right in front of his eyes. And Vernon knew those words haunted the younger for years.
Chan carried those emotions since then—anger, betrayal, but above all, pain.
And now, he was the reason beyond those emotions.
He was the one who inflicted them, not the one who tried and once promised to erase them.
And Chan's scent, oh god his scent, Caramel and Pulveroboletus Ravenelii—once a sweet aroma, often likened to sweet sponge cake, nuts, or mild spices—now smelled like rotten mushrooms.
The world inside Vernon shattered at the realization. A sudden wave of freezing, shocking cold plunged over him as if a bucket of ice had just been poured over his head.
He shouldn't have said that.
His own scent was spiking—clearly panicking. He knew he looked pale and stupid, but it didn't matter. Not when Chan's looking at him like that.
He wanted to hug him. He wanted to fucking kneel and apologize and cry and tell him that he wasn't on his right mind. That he didn't mean what he just said.
So he stepped forward once as his knees buckled, the grip on his arm tightened again, harder. He ignored it this time. A sudden desperation washed over him.
But the damage has been done.
Chan stepped backward, his back now closer to the taller alpha instead of the previous one who was now slightly backing off, but still hovering, not touching, just hovering—protectively. Vernon didn't even notice him coming closer, but still he didn't mind, his gaze focused entirely on Chan.
“Channie, I'm—I'm”
The younger omega suddenly laughed manically. Loud. It thundered through the suffocating silence.
“You really sound like my father just now, hyung.”
Vernon trembled at the devastating remarks, tears rolled down his cheeks quietly.
No, please don't say that.
There was an uncomfortable pause before Chan spoke again.
“And oh, maybe you're right huh?”
Vernon's breath hitched. Anxiety clawing his skin. He staggered to his feet, wanting to say something more, but he couldn't.
The pain in Chan’s eyes faded, replaced by a calm, cold composure. His voice was flat, but the context of it was catastrophically heartbreaking, as if delivering a final decree rather than furthering a discussion, as though Vernon's importance had vanished in just a blink of an eye.
“Maybe they're far way better in bed than you, we'll see. But that's not really important, hyung, it's the fact that you're not committed enough to this relationship, and it's enough reason for me to doubt your love towards me, no?”
“When you vanished for nine days, I was so worried, hyung. When you didn't show up yesterday for goddamn whatever the fuck reason, it almost made me insane thinking something might've happened to you. And now that you're here for half an hour, with someone else holding you like you're his lifeline, you can't even tell me anything, even just one thing, just to reassure me like you used to. Instead, you're condemning me for something ridiculous by saying those fucking words that you knew, more than anyone else, would haunt me entirely,”
“and that was enough for me.” Chan whispered.
Vernon shook his head sharply. “Baby, please that's not wh—”
“Thank you, hyung, because you made it easier for me to lose you than I thought it'd be.”
The next declaration was what broke him, completely and irreversibly.
“—and maybe, just so you know... it makes me feel excited to form a pack without you in it.”
ִֶָ𓂃 ࣪˖ ִֶָ🐢་༘࿐
Vernon woke up to an alarm, or more like from a familiar nightmare, the usual. He was used to it now, but it didn't mean it made the pain bearable. He purposely ignored the dried tears on his temple as he dragged himself out of his bed's loving embrace and went into the bathroom. The backs of his eyeballs were burnt by the fluorescent lights. He groaned out of habit.
He caught himself in front of the mirror, staring at the fading bruises under his eyes that he got from a sudden rogue attack at a high-end security hideout last week. But the purplish swelling on his cheek and nose were more prominent than ever.
One of the leaders of the syndicate, Ahn Joon-gi, an alpha, hit him two days ago with an aluminum baseball bat in the stomach after punching him hard across the face, for simply helping to stand up a struggling omega that the alpha was treating like a lapdog.
But it was fine. His body was so used to violence. He could handle any beating rather than hearing Joon-gi’s constant warning: Hansol-ah, if you don't behave well, your lovely omega will be on my list. It's not that hard to find him and you know that, no?
Vernon’s skin would always go pale every time those disgusting words would reach his ears. Hence, to prevent provoking his boss further, he would apologize like a dog, a different breed, but still a dog, a helpless and pathetic one.
Because sadly, the threat worked. As always.
Before putting an ointment, he brushed his teeth and took a quick shower. Then he took a scent blocker—spray and a single patch on his inner upper arms. Lastly, he took two pills of suppressants.
He wasn't even thinking straight, he just moved by relying on his muscle memory,
—because it's his routine for seven years now.
Although everyone in the organization knew his real subgender. The other side of his world, the syndicate—the Blood Hunters—didn't know anything about it.
It's entirely different in the syndicate because his subgender there was a beta—because apparently if you're an omega, you're automatically described as someone with loose sexual morals, willing or unwilling, basically, their harlot. A whore. A mere prey.
He had seen the omegas, male and female, being raped brutally while those alphas were watching as if it was the most amusing kind of entertainment to them. However, the betas like him, weren't permitted to watch, it just happened when he accidentally lifted the cover from the storage room and his eyes instantly locked on the scene, but it didn't even last for five seconds when the overwhelming vulgarity of the show made him retch uncontrollably. It's one of the worst he had ever seen. Since that day, he'd been careful to not show his omega side until abandoning it entirely.
He didn't remember how he ended up working with the syndicate, he didn't want to remember. Even though his role there was kind of safe—an agent bank— he real identity wasn't. Whether he likes it or not, there was still a vulnerable creature inside of him that could end his life in an instant if it'd slip even just a tiny fracture. Nothing about his real identity was safe, ever. Thus, for seven years, he constantly acted sharp and precise within the syndicate. Monotonous but still steady and safe.
As an agent bank, he was responsible for arranging money, an administrator for the loan, managing communications between the lender (the syndicate), and borrowers (their victims), and handling payments. He was relieved when the gang leaders agreed to him when he refused to handle anything that associated with torturing the victims, anything that has something to do with physical violence. Saying he wasn't physically qualified to do that anyway.
The syndicate's front members were actually treating him like a human, sort of. Aside from constantly pilfering his own money, there were no actual physical violence inflicted on him. He was just a mere puppet trying to appeal with a low profile. A beta, the boring one. His life was running smoothly, until three years ago—
Until the powerful organization showed up in front of his apartment door.
The fortress, security organization, co-founded by two packs—the Choi and the Kim pack, were known as the government's penumbra. They have saved and protected the victims of every syndicate in the city, as much as they could, until now. They were like a cosmic-scale shelters to the country, providing a head start for safe, shielded, and sustainable bases for those potential victims—most often, Omega citizens. Vernon had never seen them before, but he heard about them being brutal and mercilessly savage towards the enemies. No wonder almost all syndicates were scared of them. None of those idiotic criminals have tried to fight back out of ego, not really, instead, they would just hide until their fate decided to fuck them up and choose to join forces with the organization.
The organization welcomed him three years ago, not kindly, but not through violence either. The reason? His subgender—omega. "We don't enforce violence to your kind, kid. That's the rule, and we know you're just one of the victims of those people." Instead of relief, Vernon felt more offended, to him, it was just a gentler way to insult his subgender. Weak. Fragile. Useless.
They caught him while he was working for the syndicate, while he wasn't wearing a scent blockers, totally exposed. His omega was severely anxious at that time, but what stunned him to the core was the fact that non of those people had acted violently because of his bare scent. They were calm and just methodically backed off a little without letting him run away. But it wasn't enough to calm him down, because he knew instantly he would be thrown towards the prison, with other criminals, and the thought almost made him tremble. So without wasting a second, he made a move and professionally proposed a deal with the organization. And in the end, he found his way out by negotiation. After all, it as a win-win situation for both sides.
And by then, he was the—unidentified—rat inside the syndicate.
Basically, a traitor.
In the security organization, he was technically given the position of a private security agent.
But the truth was— he's just a mere intel. He knew that the private security agent was just for formality.
As an intel, he collects database entries from the syndicate's system that provide background lore on the day-to-day storyline of the gang, often detailing the actions of every important member, every transaction between the gang and another, and the initiatives. He sold all the information to the organization just to avoid a possible torture in prison.
But it didn't last long. Just a year ago, he just turned into something else. He was more than just a traitor now, more risky, perhaps worst—a turncoat.
The syndicate eventually caught him working for the organization. A beta, Joon-gi's sneaky bitch, was apparently watching him. And when the whole syndicate discovered this, Ahn Joon-gi didn't kill him immediately, unfortunately. But he was tortured and beaten to near-death, not enough to kill him. The only good thing about the entire situation was that, an anonymous, he assumed still one of the gang members had warned him two hours before the confrontation, urging him to run away, but he didn't, he couldn't. Instead, he directly injected three vials of suppressants into his blood to totally blocked his natural omega scent. And he knew that the reason of his shaking figure wasn't entirely from Joon-gi's beating, but one of the side effects of that high dosage of suppressants he consumed. He was in a haze at that time, but he could still remember some things: Most of the gang's amused laugh, filming him while Ahn Joon-gi hit him with a wolf bat to death. But that wasn't what ingrained to his memory the most, it was Ahn Joon-gi's poisonous threat.
A chant. A reminder, worse than any warning Vernon had ever heard.
‘You're such a typical beta, Hansol, a smart one that always ends up being a traitor. So I'm wondering, an omega might be different, don't you think so? I think your lovely Chan will be much more useful than you.’
Vernon was trembling violently while sprawling on the floor with his scentless blood.
No.
Not Chan, please.
So without a hitch, he ended up crawling out of desperation, he practically begged by pressing his forehead on the alpha's shoes. Silently pleading him to leave Chan alone. He's more likely doing that rather than negotiating, which wasn't his plan hours before. Ignoring the quiet murmurs about him having an unbelievable audacity. But still, he tried.
“Forgive me for not telling you immediately, sir, but please know that I– I never betrayed the gang. All the information I gave to them was inaccurate. Are there any g–glitches in every transaction? N–no, right? It's because I lied to them. I didn't betray the gang, sir, please.” Please, just leave Chan alone.
Ahn Joon-gi smirked, as one of the leaders of this syndicate, of course he would know exactly what Vernon was trying to do.
“What are your negotiations, then. I might spare your life and leave your omega alone when I happen to like it, come on, indulge me.”
Vernon swallowed the bitter acid bile on his throat, ignoring his trembling body.
“I'll give you every information about their plans that involve the blood hunters, isn't it perfect? It will prevent you from getting caught.”
By then, he's officially a turncoat.
But he knew deep down, he's playing both sides of the war, against the syndicate and the organization, he's practically operating as a double agent—the silent enemy. He didn't have a choice but to strategize. Hence, to prevent the same nightmares that left him shattered seven years ago, this time, he ensured a win regardless of the outcome—even if it cost him his own life.
He would create a power vacuum, just long enough to protect Chan, even if he no longer has any idea of the younger omega’s whereabouts, which perhaps, far way better, he would still protect him as much as he could.
The moment Vernon stepped into the basement of the security organization, Kino’s voice rang, he was literally shouting.
“Vernon! Why are you late? You’re not in a movie, get your ass over here before I force you to marry me!”
Vernon rolled his eyes and jogged to him.
“In your dreams. Ready to get your ass kicked?” He spat teasingly.
Even though he could fight, he knew he wasn't an expert yet in combat, and Kino was a different case since he was an alpha, and he's been in the organization for eight years along with Hongjoong and Seonghwa.
After wearing their gears and a little bit of warmups. They squared up and started throwing punches at each other. Hongjoong, another alpha, arrived a few minutes later.
“Wait, a moment,” Vernon told Kino, turning to Hongjoong to ask about today’s routine, but Kino lunged at him and pinned him to the ground before starting to tickle him relentlessly.
“Hey, stop! It’s not funny!” Vernon groaned, struggling to keep his face stoic. “Kim Hong Joong, help me!”
Hongjoong chuckled.
“A potential omega warrior asking a little old alpha like me for help, no way, I'm tired Vernon, leave me alone.”
Instead of helping him, the alpha crouched and joined Kino in tickling him.
“Say please, and I’ll ask him to stop.””Please!”
“You asshole!” Vernon shouted, squirming.
After five more minutes of tickling, thank the gods, they got back to training.
Just as they took a break, Vernon found Kim Bohyun, a beta commander from their team, along with Seonghwa, another beta in the team, who was now walking straight to Hongjoong while the commander was still leaning against the doorway, watching them.
His neutral face turned serious when he locked eyes with Vernon, then he tilted his head towards the office.
“To my office, now.” He ordered casually.
Vernon shrugged and opened his mouth to speak, but the commander was already walking away, so he only nodded and followed silently.
Meanwhile, the others were unfazed, just casually conversing. So he just left them without words.
He entered the office a minute later, ignoring the nervous feeling nagging inside him.
Weird.
He bowed slightly with pleasantries, Kim Bohyun did the same, then launched straight into the point, which was what he liked about him by the way.
“Agent Chwe, you will be temporarily moved to another team.” The commander started.
Vernon remained silent, urging him to continue.
“The organization will be conducting a new mission, which only this team could certainly execute. You didn't meet them yet because of the hectic schedules. But as you must know, they are at the top of this organization, so it's a certain win. Their pack, originally three among them were the founders. This entire organization is basically theirs, along with the Kim pack which you met six months ago, but they're all too humble to acknowledge that. Anyway, the Choi pack doesn't know the new recruits yet, including you. That's why they decided to finally come here after years, for formal greetings aside from your orientation to the team. And another important thing, it's a 4 months duration of preparation and 1 week minimum of execution following that, which is tentative yet.”
Vernon nodded, processing the information.
Then, his brows furrowed in curiosity. “If this is an important mission, why me? Kino or Hongjoong could execute this perfectly.”
Bohyun stared at him calmly with understanding.
“They need an omega in the team, Vernon. All omegas in team 3B were on a mission. And you're the only omega in team 3A, and you're not doing anything yet after the rogue attack. I think I gave you enough time to rest, right?”
Vernon nodded again, slightly grateful when the commander didn't fuss about his bruised face.
“One of your roles here is probably to lure the syndicate members. I doubt they need another one for combat. What they need is a manipulator. Which they also already have, but they need someone who can negotiate by using scent. You know, a typical stupid alphas’ weakness.”
His omega scent.
He even hated smelling his own scent, and now he's about to expose it to lure some random alphas?
He wanted to throw up.
“Agent Choi informed me that they found out that the syndicate members were strictly limited to alphas only. I'm sure they'll go wild seeing an omega in their field. That's one of your weapons in this mission. But still, you and your team will discuss further about that.” Bohyun added.
He wanted to laugh.
A weapon? sounds more like a scapegoat.
The team was recruiting him because they probably thinks he was made the sacrificial lamb for an organization’s win.
If everything goes wrong, he'll definitely die. But it's not like he cares about it anyway.
He was alive merely because he's protecting someone.
Someone who loathe him to death.
If he finally kills the mastermind of the syndicate he's working with, which he knew wasn't Ahn Joon-gi, then he'll finally give the universe his permission to die—when Chan's safety was certain by then.
It’s okay. Your mission is to end a crime.
It's okay, Vernon.
It's going to be okay.
Bohyun spoke again. “Don't worry, they have never, ever failed a single mission. Although this is their first time recruiting a temporary member, they are a pack, a tight one, so I assure you the protection is guaranteed even if you're not their mate, you're still part of the team.”
Wait.
“A pack without an omega?” That's rare.
Bohyun smiled this time. “No, they have omegas in their pack. Three. But their alphas and betas were too protective to let them get involved in any of this mess.”
Vernon paused.
That's…an admirable pack then.
He nodded in understanding, “Where's the hideout?”
“The pack’s hideout is still here in Seoul, but specifically based in Gangnam. Anyway, those 4 months were a locked-in mission, well, not really, but you have to live there for a while according to their pack leader.”
Four months? That's too long just for a preparation.
“So I'll stay in the same four corners for 4 months?”
Bohyun rolled his eyes. “No, their territory is bigger than you thought. A big mansion, a safe house, an open yard, you'll see it yourself, it's like a village type with a single pack but more secluded, and also the security is tighter than ours.”
Vernon hummed.
“But what about the syndicate? I can't just vanish for that long.”
The commander stared at him for a moment. “Inform them.”
Vernon froze. His eyes widened slightly.
“What?”
Shit…
Bohyun sighed in annoyance, “I don't know, tell them you're working on something important without exposing your ties with us. You're an agent now, Vernon, find ways. And if it doesn't work, I'll help.”
Oh.
Oh.
He paused for a moment.
Okay. okay..
Exploitation, he could do that. He just has to lie to the gang that this mission involves them, like the usual. For sure they'll be dying to know all the information regarding the mission. Then he's free to disappear for four months and more or less a week.
“Does this mission involve them?”
“We don't know yet, your team might find something that associates them with the problem, but as far as I know, the main target is another syndicate, bigger.”
“Bigger syndicate?”
Bohyun nodded, “Hm, The True Shades.”
Vernon froze.
He stopped breathing for a moment.
His sleep–deprived brain took a moment to catch up.
The True Shades?
He felt as if his heart had been crushed by shards of ice, the pain sharp and bitter, a familiar memory echoing in his mind.
He felt like he was being submerged. All he could hear was Bohyun’s words, repeating over and over.
The True Shades.
The syndicate that destroyed his life.
The syndicate that killed his sister.
Bohyun seemed to notice his reaction.
“Vernon?”
“Vernon, hey, are you okay?”
A warm hand on his shoulder startled him, he blinked as he looked at the beta’s concerned face.
He took a subtle deep breath before plastering a strained smile. His hands behind him formed into fist to stop the sudden tremor. Knuckles turning white.
“Yes, yes of course. I was just surprised to hear the name. They're scary, you know. And... isn't that syndicate has fallen out already?”
He was grateful when Bohyun seemed convinced with his stammer.
“Ah, yes, after their leader was killed, it was really bound to collapse, no doubt. But the organization discovered recently that Gyu Taeji’s son took over.” He sighed, “I can't help but to think about the person who killed Taeji. I wonder where he is now. X? Such a simple yet dangerous code name.”
Vernon pressed his lips together, emotions tangled.
A phone on Bohyun’s table buzzed. The commander read the message then stood up as he looked at Vernon. “Anyways, I need you to pack up tonight.”
“Okay, when can I meet the team?”
“Now. They're already here, let's go.”
Vernon ignored the bitter acid in his throat and immediately followed outside. He noticed the murmur among agents about whoever was arriving.
Upon walking the hallway, he could see through the glass wall all his co-recruit members of the organization bowing. But he couldn't see further, the compartment's wooden barrier blocked the view of the people they were bowing to.
The formality stunned him for a moment.
Are they that big of a deal?
Then he remembered Bohyun’s words.
Three of them were the founders of the organization.
Right.
He glanced at the large security screen on the wall, he noticed the two black Mercedes-Maybach and one Mercedes-Benz parked at the parking lot below the building. No doubt they're a wealthy pack.
He averted his eyes when someone from the room opened the door, then all the new recruits went outside after the greetings.
Great, what a shit day, his introverted ass probably has to face this powerful pack alone for the first time. Thank god he's wearing scent blockers to hide his nervousness.
“Let's go inside.” Commander Bohyun’s voice caught his attention.
He silently followed.
Even from the outside, he could feel the intimidating aura radiating off them. Upon entering, he took a subtle sniff of the room while keeping his gaze on the ground. He let out a sigh of relief when he realized they were muted, so he assumed they were wearing scent blockers too. Well, organization rules. It took a few seconds before he lifted his eyes.
Then—
Standing in front of the long table were nine men, already staring at him. His eyes instinctively scanned the pack, taking stock of everyone with a discreet effort.
Until his gaze swept past the eighth man, and suddenly his breathing stopped.
He blinked hard, as though confirming if he was hallucinating.
But unfortunately, he wasn't.
The man was already watching him, his eyes were cold—the same cold eyes glaring at him seven years ago.
The same man who tried to protect his ex-boyfriend from him.
Vernon flicked his eyes, the last tall man beside him was the one who emerged from the shadow in that parking lot, the same who held back the younger alpha from snarling at him.
Kwan-ah, stop.
He didn't know the tall man's name, but his firm voice rang in his mind like a plaque.
Choi Seungkwan.
That's the name of the younger alpha beside the tall one, for sure.
“You must be the recruit member of the team. I'm Choi Seungcheol, by the way.” A deep voice broke him out of his trance.
Vernon was surprised that the man was already in front of him, raising his hand enough for a gesture of handshake. Vernon stared at his face, then his hand, then back to his face, he was handsome, probably too handsome with his dark hair, dark and thick eyebrows and sharp cheekbones. Though his deep eyes revealed nothing. His natural, sharp and authoritative aura was silently revealing itself. Pressing the air around them like a direct command.
Vernon concluded immediately that the man was the pack's head alpha. The leader of the team. Perhaps, one of the initial founders of the organization.
He swallowed hard, as if a cold breeze brushed past his ears. Fortunately, years of feeling numb, he's already an expert at masking his expressions.
He nodded as he cleared his throat and accepted the man's hand. “I'm Chwe Hansol. Call me Vernon, that's my code name, sir.”
He caught Seungcheol’s thick brow slightly raised—and he just wanted to disappear from the room in an instant.
Seungcheol stepped back before speaking, “This is my team. We're actually a pack if you're not aware yet, but we need a temporary recruit, specifically an omega agent, to execute this mission smoothly.” He glanced at the rest, then nodded.
An angelic face approached then, his face unreadable, but Vernon couldn't grasp just how beautiful he was. The man stared at him for a moment, his eyes boldly scanning him up and down, before gesturing to him for a handshake. Vernon shivered but still followed through, ignoring the weird feeling under those gaze. “I'm Choi Jeonghan, but the organization call me Agent Yoon. I'm looking forward to working with you, Vernon.”
Vernon smiled and averted his eyes to the others, he could already tell the two men behind Jeonghan were forced to do this, but they greeted him anyway.
Their expressions were a mixture of forced disinterest and barely concealed hostility.
“Soonyoung, we're all Chois by the way.”
“I'm Myungho.”
Before Vernon could extend his hand again, someone behind spoke in a firm, familiar hostile tone.
“Commander Kim, Don’t you have any other omega in your team? Or in another team at least?”
The room went silent.
The indication was clear: We don't want this omega in our team.
Even so, Vernon looked down and remained quiet, waiting for his commander to speak for him.
It's not like he wanted to join this fucking mission.
And this man was making it look like Vernon was the one who forced himself to do this.
What a load of shit.
“Seungkwan-ah, this is not about anything but the mission.” Their pack leader said calmly, but beneath his calm voice was a clear authority clinging on him.
“Exactly, hyung, we need a stable one. An omega that's not easily swayed by his emotions. And are we even sure that he won't betray us? he seems good at that.”
The tension in the air became heavier.
Slowly, he finally looked up, meeting Seungkwan’s eyes. Annoyance was starting to prick his flesh inside, urging him to talk back, but before he could say anything, Commander Bohyun already beat him to it.
“Unfortunately, Seungkwan-ssi, we only have one omega in our team. The rest of the omegas in other teams were currently on a mission. The entire organization has only five omegas, including Agent Chwe. But don't worry, as someone who mentored him for three years, I can assure you that he's trustworthy despite the history, and also he's the most stable one here among all subgenders, especially emotionally. He's too stable than necessary actually.”
Vernon winced internally, his commander was talking about him as if he wasn't in the same room with them.
Seungcheol replied after a moment.
“No, it's okay, Commander Kim, we appreciate it. Mr. Chwe is very much welcome… and needed to the team.”
Vernon remained his neutral gaze on Seungkwan. Watching the disgust coloring the alpha’s eyes as he moved an office chair with a loud screech.
Then, another three men approached that shifted his attention, extending their hands like the others.
The first one leaned closer, just enough for a respectful distance and plastered an apologetic smile. “Don't mind him, he's just stressed. I'm Jisoo by the way.”
Vernon nodded silently as he extended his hand. The other two followed.
“Nice meeting you, Vernon. I'm Junui.”
“I'm Wonwoo.”
Then the tall man finally approached, his eyes cold, it seemed like he purposely let his anger be seen by Vernon, just less aggressive than Seungkwan.
“Mingyu.” After shaking hands, he immediately let go and stepped back from him, as if Vernon was carrying a contagious disease that could spread just by a mere prolonged contact.
Vernon straightened his posture, assuming Seungkwan wouldn't bother to greet him. But Seungcheol’s scrutinizing gaze seemed to crack the youngest alpha’s facade. He lifted his gaze towards Vernon again, eyes blank now.
Vernon watched his adam’s apple move as he approached casually before extending his hand. “Seungkwan.” He said flatly.
Vernon calmly nodded and mirrored the gesture, he didn't have the energy to indulge his anger.
Finally, Commander Bohyun cleared his throat, breaking the tension.
“I already told Agent Chwe to get ready for tonight.”
Choi Seungcheol nodded as he adjusted his cufflinks. “Alright, thank you Commander Kim.” Then, he looked at Vernon. “We will send someone in the organization to pick you up for your ride to Gangnam. Everything you need is ready at the hideout, you just have to bring some of your clothes and other important things to you.”
For a moment, an absurd thought came to Vernon.
According to Commander Bohyun, this pack has three omegas.
Is Chan one of them then?
He immediately shook his head to dismiss the idea. Instead, he bowed to the pack alpha slightly, ignoring the pairs of eyes staring directly at him.
“Understood, sir.” Then he turned to Commander Bohyun, “I must go home now and pack my things.”
After silently asking for permission from Choi Seungcheol, the commander then nodded in approval.
Vernon didn't hesitate, he calmly adjusted the hem of his leather jacket and turned to leave without glancing back.
ִֶָ𓂃 ࣪˖ ִֶָ🐢་༘࿐