Petty Wars and Uninvited Guests

I had my reasons for acting this petty over food.

–“You stayed one night, that’s enough, right? Hey, get out now.”

–“No. I still haven’t defined what I feel about you.”

–“Oh come on! I said get out! Can’t you hear the homeowner? What are you, illegal squatters? Aren’t you leaving?!”

–“Can’t hear you. Not hearing anything.”

–“Hey!!!”

No matter what I did, those bastards didn’t budge, like immovable rocks.

It was like throwing eggs at a stone wall.

‘Y… you…! You’ve confirmed I’m fine, so get the hell out already, you leech-like bastards!’

I cursed them and even called Chairman Seong with empty threats about making things difficult for their families, but it was useless.

These guys clearly had no intention of leaving my house.

“Sniff… Janggun, Dad’s really struggling.”

“Whiiine.”

“If you bite their third legs, will they leave…? No, that’s disgusting. I can’t make you bite something like that. Dad must be losing it from stress. Sorry, Janggun.”

“Woof!”

It got so bad one day that I held Janggun and vented.

Seeing that, Chae Yunchan said I looked like an Omega with prenatal depression, so I nearly smacked him.

‘If it’s come to this, then fine. It’s war.’

I’ll make your lives miserable, you bastards.

I knew it was petty to force these pampered Alpha young masters—who had probably lived their whole lives eating food prepared by others—to cook for themselves.

I knew.

But sometimes, you had to go through with it anyway.

‘If I act this ruthless, they’ll finally go back home!’

I’d lend them all the tools and ingredients in my house, but I’d leave them to figure everything out themselves.

Those fragile alliances between Alphas, constantly checking each other because of Seo Eunsu, would fall apart soon enough.

‘That’s what I’m aiming for.’

If it meant making them abandon their pointless stubbornness and run, I’d do anything.

For example, making them work dressed in this ridiculously tacky full farmer outfit set.

Looking at the colorful arm sleeves, baggy pants, and this purely practical hat—would they really be able to keep their composure?

No way.

‘Let’s see how long these pampered pretty boys can last while ruining their style. Heh.’

I remembered how Yoo Iseo had worn that horrifying pink apron with an absurd floral pattern while preparing my breakfast.

Even though he smiled like it didn’t bother him at all, I knew.

He probably wanted to rip that apron apart and burn it immediately.

‘You could tell from the way Baek Dojun, Chae Yunchan, and Joo Taegang all wore those aprons while barely holding in their laughter…’

For men, pride was everything.

Even obsessive Alpha male leads in novels couldn’t escape that.

Maybe because Seo Eunsu was here, they were all dressed neatly, but this was my home ground.

‘I tried to handle things nicely.’

I even apologized in a different way than the original Chanyeong, but they still came after me.

So now I’d switch tactics and act like a tyrant.

Like a proper villain, I’d torment them until they ran away from my paradise.

“Get ready. I’ll make you peel garlic and onions, trim scallions, and even peel ginger and deodeok.”

Hehehehe.

I’ll show you what a truly evil farm owner looks like.

You’d better be ready for s*ave-like labor exploitation!

Living under the same roof as the original novel’s main characters was turning me into a vicious, hysterical landlord.

Seriously, can they all just leave me alone already.

Since Baek Dojun, Chae Yunchan, Yoo Iseo, and Joo Taegang had decided to stay, I needed to assign rooms.

Thankfully, my house was large with plenty of rooms, so accommodating four extra people wasn’t a problem.

I silently thanked Secretary Choi for choosing a three-story countryside house.

“I’ll assign the rooms. Chae Yunchan and Joo Taegang on the first floor. Baek Dojun and Yoo Iseo on the second. Take any empty room and settle in.”

I had wondered when I’d ever use all these spare rooms.

Didn’t expect it to be like this.

Each room had basic furniture—bed, desk, chair—and was of average size, though it looked a bit small compared to these large Alphas.

As expected, Chae Yunchan puffed up his cheeks and protested.

“You expect me to live in a room like this? It’s tiny! I don’t like the furniture either. Change it!”

All the furniture had been carefully selected by Secretary Choi—top-tier brands.

And yet, he complained just because it wasn’t his taste.

Like I’d grant that.

“Denied. Not happening. If you can’t stand it, leave. I won’t stop you.”

“You’re being petty! Even Chairman Seong doesn’t look for you anymore—how long do you think you can keep acting like this? You don’t even have long to live—”

‘Wow, he’s really going all out with the insults.’

It didn’t hurt.

I already knew his temper was as filthy as dirty mop water.

There was a reason my sister used to skim past his scenes when recommending the novel.

“So, you’re leaving? That works for me.”

“Ugh…!”

“Don’t pick fights you can’t win. You’ll gain nothing from it.”

My cold response made his face flush red with humiliation.

As he trembled, I reached for the neatly folded bedding.

“You said you didn’t like it, so I’ll take this.”

“Ah, no!”

He lunged forward and clutched the bedding protectively.

Figures.

He had probably been trying to assert control after getting mad about having to cook his own meals.

Too bad he picked the wrong opponent.

“I-It’s fine… I was wrong…”

With messy blond hair and teary blue eyes, he pleaded with me.

Completely different from his earlier arrogance.

‘What a waste. I almost got rid of one.’

Pushing aside my disappointment, I finished assigning the rooms.

“You’re free to leave anytime while staying here. If you need anything, handle it yourselves. I’ll see you tomorrow morning for work.”

“So we really have to take care of everything ourselves?” Taegang asked.

I answered firmly.

“You’re not guests. You’re uninvited. Now go rest. I will too.”

After confirming they had all gone to their rooms, I headed up to my cozy third-floor room with Janggun.

I had strictly forbidden access to the third floor.

Anyone who came up without permission would be thrown out immediately.

“Ugh.”

“Woof! Woof!”

“I know, Janggun. You’re having a hard time because of them too, right? Let’s just endure a little longer, okay?”

“Whiiine…”

I flopped onto the bed, and Janggun pressed himself against my side.

Warm.

“My nose feels weird.”

Being in a house full of Alphas—even if they controlled their pheromones well—made it impossible not to feel sensitive.

The different scents mixed together, making me frown repeatedly.

At this rate, I might actually turn irritable like the original Chanyeong.

It wasn’t that the scents were bad.

But like how even a rose can smell foul if it’s too strong, the overwhelming mix made me feel nauseous.

‘I’m basically a mouse trapped among cats.’

Like a mouse trying to survive among bell-wearing cats.

And among those cats was Baek Dojun—who knew that I, or rather Chanyeong, was a recessive Omega.

‘He wouldn’t reveal it… but still.’

It made me uneasy.

If he snapped like Chae Yunchan and revealed my secret, I’d be finished.

The roles would flip instantly, and I’d end up being dragged around by them.

That absolutely couldn’t happen.

“Maybe I should’ve warned or threatened him in advance.”

But since things were quiet, it seemed safe for now.

“Janggun, if Baek Dojun tries anything weird, bite his mouth, okay?”

“Woof!”

Holding onto warm Janggun, all my worries slowly melted away.

My thoughts drifted, and my eyes grew heavy.

‘But who the hell was that guy who left Alpha pheromones on me?’

For a Beta with no scent to carry pheromones… it could mean he was attracted only to Betas.

But what bothered me was something else.

When I fell and got hurt, Moon Kyungsik had smiled—just for a moment.

‘Creepy… why was he smiling when I fell?’

Was he really just a dutiful grandson taking care of his senile grandfather?

Or was he targeting Chanyeong?

Whatever it was, I just hoped he wouldn’t bother me.

If anyone threatened my home or Janggun, I’d destroy them—no matter who it was.

The moon set, and the sun rose again.

At 7 a.m., my alarm blared loudly.

[Wake up! Wake up!]

“Ugh… it’s so hard to get up.”

Only after seeing Janggun wagging his tail for food did I manage to get out of bed.

“Woof!”

“Yeah, yeah. I’ll feed you.”

After giving him his favorite brand of dog food and water, I headed downstairs, yawning nonstop.

‘I’m sleepy.’

I had told the housekeeper not to come this morning, so I had to prepare my own meal.

I didn’t want the Alphas asking her to cook for them.

“…What’s this?”

Three pieces of meat skewers I hadn’t seen before were sitting in a plastic container in the fridge.

I assumed the housekeeper had left them.

But that wasn’t it.

“Huh? A note?”

A small piece of paper was taped to the lid.

[Eat up and get your strength. Don’t get sick.]

“…?”

I calmly recalled who among them was the best at cooking.

“It’s Baek Dojun.”

I didn’t expect him to be skilled enough to make something like this.

“…At this rate, they might last longer than I thought.”

I really hoped this bad feeling was wrong.

Please, let these bastards not know the meaning of cooperation.