Strategic Mating Partner Chapter 57

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It was about a week later that Sejin adapted to the resumed group training. Having faced each of the other three male athletes in practice matches at least twice, Sejin quickly blended into the épée national team. As his coach had advised before he left for Korea, proving himself through skill was faster than a hundred words. Sejin succeeded in decisively defeating Dongcheol in their second match. It was the same with the other two senior athletes. This was the result of analyzing his teammates’ match videos all day after returning home.

“Wow, only eighteen, huh…”

They must have all been prodigies at some point to reach their current age, yet every time Sejin did something, their constant remarks about his age honestly grated on his nerves. It felt bad that no matter what he did, they always focused on his age first. Regardless, as soon as it was proven that Sejin’s low ranking was merely due to the system and that his skills were worthy of aiming for gold, the wariness around him dissolved as if they’d never been distant.

Within the team, Sejin’s perception shifted from an unknown kid who stumbled in and took a spot to a somewhat cocky but unpolished talent with the greatest potential among the four men gathered. Sejin, too, began to see the male and female athletes not as anonymous competitors but as individuals, sparring with each to broaden his experience. He was also starting to pick up on their relationships.

“…”

Even during break time, Sejin clicked his tongue as he noticed Seoyoung, as always, staring intently at someone nearby. A stranger might think she was just observing to learn their technique, but after a week of being paired with her as the youngest members for training, Sejin could tell right away. This was more than mere curiosity. Sejin rarely initiated conversation with Seoyoung or other teammates, but this time, her constant staring was too irritating to ignore.

“What are you looking at like that?”

As Sejin spoke up to Seoyoung for once, she looked at him with surprised eyes.

“What? You’re actually talking to me?”

“You’re making me uncomfortable. You’re not a stalker, so what’s with that?”

Seoyoung immediately protested.

“A stalker? I’m just looking! There might be something I can learn…”

Liar. She didn’t look at the other female athletes any more or less than normal. She was fixated on one specific athlete all day, and it was impossible not to notice.

Did the person know? The athlete Seoyoung kept staring at was Ms. Ji Hyojung, the oldest among the female athletes. This was her third Olympics, and she was set to retire after this one. She was still holding up, but an unhealable shoulder injury, even with surgery, meant her persistence was the result of sheer willpower.

In her first Olympics, she won a team silver medal; in her second, an individual gold and a team bronze. She’d already won every medal possible, so what lingered for her? Sejin let out a light scoff and looked away. He didn’t exactly understand, but with such a record, it made sense why Seoyoung was so blindly captivated. It just felt off because that didn’t seem to be the whole story.

He found out why not long after.

“Alright, done.”

Before training started, Sejin happened to see Hyojung, who arrived at the training center a bit early, pricking her fingertip with a small needle-like device. What was that? Blood sugar? As Sejin absentmindedly watched her put the suspicious device back into her bag, Seoyoung, who had been closely observing nearby, explained.

“First time seeing a pheromone meter?”

She pulled one out of her bag to show Sejin.

“They all use this in Korea. It’s made by a Korean company, so foreign athletes probably don’t know it.”

The palm-sized electronic device had a slot for a cartridge, and its top bore a brand logo Sejin had never seen. When Sejin tilted his head, still unsure what it meant, Seoyoung looked surprised.

“Hyojung unnie and I are open about our traits, so we just use it without hiding. Don’t you use something similar?”

Open traits? Sejin vaguely understood but kept tilting his head at the unfamiliar Korean term.

“I don’t really get what you mean…”

Seoyoung’s eyes widened in disbelief as she asked back.

“You’re not an alpha?”

Sejin answered immediately.

“No. They said I might be, though.”

“No way!”

Seoyoung was stunned by his response.

“Maybe because you’re still young? I manifested as soon as I entered high school…”

Then she rattled off TMI he wasn’t particularly curious about.

“I’m an alpha. Hyojung unnie is an omega. It’s not like we hide it—Hyojung unnie even does campaigns representing omega athletes, so it’s pretty much public knowledge. You probably didn’t know since you’re from abroad.”

Sejin’s thought was, did he need to know this? In Korea, as in France, trait information was generally private. Alphas often hid their status because, no matter their achievements, people would just say their physical advantages gave them an edge, which was annoying. Omegas, on the other hand, avoided revealing their status due to the promiscuous image tied to their reproductive heat cycles. With various suppressants available, it was nearly impossible to discern someone’s trait unless explicitly stated, though accidents from unnoticed ruts or heats occasionally made headlines.

Sejin was still unmanifested. Despite being no different from an average beta, the label “still unmanifested” stuck because he clearly had traits that screamed future alpha. His extraordinary physical abilities were proof enough. People marveled that if he wasn’t an alpha, he must be a genetic jackpot among betas.

Sejin didn’t care either way. Alpha, omega, girlfriends, boyfriends, virginity, sex—it didn’t matter to him. There were plenty of pathetic guys around him acting like they’d die if they didn’t lose their virginity, but that never piqued Sejin’s interest. The only thing that captured his attention in this world was fencing. Well, except for one person.

“…”

Sejin suddenly recalled that when Taehyun visited his place, he’d seen a device identical to the one Hyojung was handling in Taehyun’s bag.

“…?”

Wait a second. It might’ve been a mistake, but the color he glimpsed among Taehyun’s bag contents was too similar. Startled, Sejin spoke to Seoyoung.

“Can you show me that again for a second?”

“Huh? All of a sudden? Sure, I guess…”

Seoyoung rummaged through her bag and handed the device to Sejin. He turned it over to check the back. From the charging port to the cartridge slot’s orientation—it was the same device he’d seen that day.

“…!”

At that moment, Sejin was struck by an urge to confirm something.

“Does this work for both alphas and omegas?”

Seoyoung looked puzzled, as if wondering why he asked.

“Yeah. Why the sudden interest?”

Sejin didn’t respond. Taehyun… was highly likely an alpha. Most athletes with his physique, strength, and skill were alphas. Just then, Hyojung approached the two.

“Are you guys just gonna sit there when training’s about to start?”

Hyojung, notably tall among the female athletes, cast an intimidating shadow over Sejin and Seoyoung’s heads. With a yelp, Seoyoung sprang up and greeted her with a smile.

“No! I was just about to get up. Let’s go, unnie!”

Her tone was so charming and sweet that Sejin was dumbfounded by how different she was from when she interacted with other seniors or him. Watching the two head toward the gathering point side by side, he noted they didn’t quite fit the typical alpha or omega stereotypes. Seoyoung was barely over 160 cm, while Hyojung stood nearly as tall as Sejin, at least mid-170s. Of course, size wasn’t a definitive indicator of being an alpha, but still. Seeing Seoyoung’s face, which clearly wasn’t just typical admiration for a senior, Sejin let out a light scoff.

“Why don’t you just confess already?”