Strategic Mating Partner Chapter 121

‘I really have no idea what’s going on.’

The post that was briefly uploaded at dawn and then deleted was long gone, and he could only guess what it was about from the fragmented mentions people made of it. Piecing together the contents, it seemed likely that the person who held a grudge was not targeting Sejin, but himself. However, just as he was about to conclude that he couldn’t think of anyone who held that much of a grudge against him… a face with now-hazy features came to mind.

‘No way, it can’t be.’

It’s been so long since they broke up, there was no way that person still held a grudge over what happened back then. It seemed more plausible to stick with his initial thought, that it was the misdeed of a staff member from the association or the agency. But why? There was no reason for them to do such a thing. Was it purely to interfere with his performance? Was it a simple personal grudge rather than for any real gain? He couldn’t be sure either way.

‘I don’t think I’ve wronged anyone to that extent….’

Fortunately, Sejin seemed to be completely in the dark. In the first place, the guy wasn’t even logged into his own social media account, which was managed by the agency, and he used his phone as little more than an alarm clock with a calling function, so there was no way he would be up to date on public opinion online. If he had known, he would have been surprised and asked if he was really seeing someone else, or at the very least, he would have done something to address it. Although, it was possible he was keeping his mouth shut so as not to affect his performance. But honestly, Sejin wasn’t a meticulous guy who was that good at hiding his emotions. The fact that he couldn’t hide his feelings from him and got caught was proof of that.

Taehyun once again thought about who on earth could have orchestrated this ridiculous stunt. The moment they revealed their relationship to the world, it would be clear that it was an absurd, groundless rumor, so why spread such a rumor in the first place? And right after that, ah, he deduced the answer on his own. If he didn’t reveal that he was an Omega, there was no way to prove this rumor was false. If the person who spread the rumor knew about Taehyun’s constitution, there was a high probability they were also aware that Taehyun was hiding a constitution that didn’t fit his public image. Thinking of it that way, everything clicked into place.

‘The contents of the rumor are all based on the premise that I’m an Alpha.’

Hah…. Finding the situation absurd, Taehyun swept back the bangs that had fallen onto his forehead and let out a long sigh, whoo. Whatever the culprit’s motive for spreading the rumor was, Taehyun no longer had any intention of hiding his constitution. If a rumor with no legs could spread this far, there was a 100 percent chance that at least one reporter would break etiquette and ask a related question at the team disbandment press conference. Well then, he could just serve them a full-course meal of revelations then and there. It wasn’t a major deviation from the plan he had anticipated.

Having reached a conclusion, he flopped back down, his head hitting the bed. Sejin’s qualifying match was about to begin.

‘I wanted to go cheer for him in person….’

It was obvious that the moment he stepped out of the dorm today, a storm of nagging would rain down on him, so disappointingly, he had to be content with cheering from a distance. He went to the official website of the broadcasting channel that had the rights to Sejin’s match, installed various apps, and even sat through advertisements. After all that, a countdown to the start of the match appeared at the top of the screen. The camera was still showing the stadium, where athletes and officials were bustling about.

‘…….’

So that’s what it looks like from here. Taehyun looked at the stadium, where he had been standing until just yesterday, with a strangely unfamiliar feeling, waiting for Sejin to appear. Not long after, Sejin, with a slightly sulky expression, was caught on camera.

‘……Cute.’

As Taehyun quickly tried to take a screenshot, a pop-up notification blocked the screen.

The screenshot prevention program is active.
This screen cannot be captured.

OK

Ah, what the heck. Annoyed, he was tapping around the screen when it suddenly slid to the side and shrank, revealing a real-time chat window.

-When does it start?

-There’s a timer at the top

-Just show us Joo Sejin’s face

-It’s pathetic how these face-suckers are here looking for faces like they’re looking for celebrities. It’s because of ♡s like you that the Korean sports world is becoming more like the idol industry and going to rui…

-What is the smelly ♡ above me saying?

-What? I can’t hear you over the smell

-Everyone here came to see Joo Sejin, what’s with that guy

-There’s only one person with an idol face, how is it becoming like the idol industry♡♡

-Please, I beg you, let’s have a speedy idolization of Korean sports. I’m a lowly person.

-Which idol has held the world number 1 ranking for a long time

-Joo Sejin, fighting! Joo Sejin, fighting! Joo Sejin, fighting! Joo Sejin, fighting! Joo Sejin, fighting!

-At least supply several handsome athletes before you talk about idolization, you ♡♡♡♡s

-Sejin, let’s get married. Sejin, let’s get married. Sejin, let’s get married. Sejin, let’s get married. Sejin, let’s get married…

In the midst of it all, there were also people fumbling around, seemingly unfamiliar with watching a broadcast through this kind of app.

-How do I turn off this chat?

-Type /closechat

-/closechat

-/closechat

-/closechat

-It’s not working ♡♡

Then, as Sejin was briefly caught on camera, the chat window exploded with talk about him.

-Wow, he’s so freaking handsome

-The.Pride.Of.Korean.Fencing.The.Handsome.Son.Of.The.Republic.Of.Korea! An.80-year-old.Grandfather.Is.Also.Cheering! For.The.Honor.Of.Our.Homeland….

-I love you, Joo Sejin. I love you, Joo Sejin. I love you, Joo Sejin. I love you, Joo Sejin. I love you, Joo Sejin. I love you, Joo Sejin…

-Ugh, stop spamming the chat, you’re blocking the screen

-Oh my gosh, Joo Sejin is on

-♡♡He’s seriously so handsome

-Wow…………….

-Those are genes that should be designated a cultural heritage and passed down to future generations

-Joo Sejin, if you’re not going to get married, at least donate your genes. Please, if you have a conscience.

Taehyun scrolled down through the ensuing chat, let out a chuckle, and pressed the arrow at the top to close the chat window. He had more or less expected it, but the chat was even more blatant than he had thought, and he couldn’t help but laugh.

Taehyun’s fandom was, by and large, a relatively even mix of genders. Of course, the proportion of male anti-fans was overwhelmingly high, but Taehyun was relatively popular with men as well. With a friendly personality that was beyond reproach and his visible camaraderie with other male athletes, he was what you might call an alpha male who was admired by everyone. It wasn’t for nothing that he was considered a well-respected athlete not only among his seniors and juniors but also among officials.

Of course, after stumbling on the biggest stage of the Olympics in succession, some anti-fans who criticized Taehyun emerged, but his image remained likable regardless of gender. Taehyun burst out laughing at the jealousy that was even more blatant than the comments on his own articles and looked at the screen.

When it was almost time for the match to begin, Sejin moved to the designated waiting area. Not long after, as Sejin put on his protective gear, covering his face, a chorus of laments poured into the chat window.

-Ah, please

-Someone make a law to change the masks to transparent ones

-This is a loss for all of humanity ♡♡

-Ah, the mask, seriously;

-The mask has no sense;;;

Then, as the preparations for the match were completed step by step according to procedure, the speed at which the chat scrolled up slowed down considerably. Sejin’s turn to compete was last. From what he said during practice, he didn’t seem too impressed with his teammates’ skills; I wonder if it will be okay. Embarrassingly, this was his first time watching a team competition, so every procedure was fascinating to him.

Fweee, the sound of the whistle blew, and at the same time, the first round began. Team Korea’s first fencer was the one who had the youngest-looking face among the athletes competing in the team épée event. And unfortunately, he was repeatedly caught up in his opponent’s pace. As he gave up points miserably, the chat window filled with curses.

-Ugh, seriously

-Hopeless

-You can’t even blame this on his condition, can you

-Pyo Guseon, fighting!!

-It’s not over yet, they can make up for it later

-I mean, isn’t it a nuisance to be falling behind from the very startㅡㅡ

-How did he get on the national team?

Taehyun pressed the arrow again to hide the chat window. The fencer was indeed not doing well, but watching him get beaten up in the real-time chat made him feel uneasy. The first round finally ended with a score of 1:5, and it was the next athlete’s turn. The next athlete seemed to have some skill, as he managed to narrow the 1:5 point gap to 4:6 before his turn ended. By the time it was finally Sejin’s first turn in the fourth round, the score was 7:8, a one-point difference.