Chaos, Cooking, and Cracks in the Armor

Fortunately for me, those bastards had no idea what teamwork meant.

Hell yeah.

Since they were all young masters who had been pampered and served their whole lives, even trivial things caused friction between them.

Their arguments were ridiculously petty.

“Hey, Joo Taegang. Why don’t you close the toilet lid after using it? And why are your slippers all the way over there?”

“That’s my business. What’s it to you?”

“It’s annoying!”

Chae Yunchan, naturally picky and sensitive, clashed horribly with Taegang, who was easygoing and messy.

In Taegang’s case, it seemed like housekeepers handled everything at home, because he didn’t even try to clean up.

Meanwhile, Yunchan had an almost obsessive habit of organizing his belongings.

Considering his usual immature behavior, it was surprising.

But that obsessive neatness made him especially intolerant of Taegang’s messiness.

“I can’t live with him!”

“Same here.”

The first floor was constantly filled with their bickering.

Whenever they fought, Janggun didn’t even go near them.

Didn’t want to get caught in the crossfire.

Same for me.

At this point, I just hoped they’d both get fed up and leave.

The second floor, where Baek Dojun and Yoo Iseo stayed, was quieter—

until it was time to clean the bathroom.

“I’ve done it before, so I don’t want to do it again.”

“Wouldn’t it be better for the experienced one to handle it?”

They fought over stuff like that.

I told them to handle everything themselves, and now they were scrambling to shove unpleasant tasks onto each other.

‘What a perfect division of labor.’

It almost felt like I was Eris, the goddess of discord, tossing a golden apple among them.

And honestly, I was enjoying the chaos.

‘But there’s one problem.’

For me, the worst one was Dojun.

That bastard had been hiding his cooking skills.

Damn it.

The moment I saw those skewers he prepared at dawn for me, I should’ve kicked him out.

“Today’s menu is fried rice. Sounds good? Shrimp, eggs, vegetables, and oyster sauce.”

Dojun took charge of cooking and fed the other Alphas.

The way he handled the wok—smooth, confident—was no joke.

I didn’t even know there was a wok in my kitchen.

Where the hell did he find it?

Because I had an induction stove, I couldn’t see any flashy flames, but if it were a gas stove, he definitely could’ve pulled off a full fire show.

I felt scammed.

‘Was the soybean paste stew just a smokescreen?’

I should’ve known the moment he added brisket.

My mistake.

He had definitely made it taste worse on purpose.

The smell coming from the kitchen changed every time—

and it always smelled amazing.

Even the housekeeper, who had been wary of them at first, started looking at Dojun with sparkling eyes.

“Oh my, such a handsome young man, and he cooks well too. He’d make a fine husband.”

She even glanced at her phone contacts, clearly itching to set him up on a blind date.

Names like “so-and-so’s daughter” and “younger sister” were visible.

‘Well… handsome, rich, and a good cook. Makes sense…’

If it weren’t for all the bad blood with Chanyeong, objectively speaking, Dojun wasn’t a bad guy.

Which made it even more annoying.

‘But still. An uninvited guest is an uninvited guest.’

“Ma’am, don’t try to set them up with anyone just because of their looks.”

“Why not, young master?”

“They’ve got terrible personalities. You can tell, right? I hate them.”

“Oh… that’s true.”

Even aside from personality, their standards were ridiculously high—just look at their obsession with Seo Eunsu.

And since this was a BL novel, they wouldn’t even be interested in women anyway.

Better to cut things off early.

As the one in charge of meals, Dojun assigned the others household chores instead—like separating food waste and recycling.

Yunchan complained at first, saying he’d never done anything like that, but Yoo Iseo convinced him after a few words.

Probably bribed him with something about Eunsu liking it.

‘This feels like… a mom with three sons.’

They kept bickering, but when it came to eating, they worked together seamlessly.

They set the table, brought side dishes, and cleaned up afterward without being told.

Watching them lounge around in comfortable clothes, it felt like I was the outsider, not the homeowner.

Even Eunsu, who had been observing, quietly admired it.

“They’re surprisingly efficient… at least when it comes to meals.”

“Right…?”

‘This isn’t how it’s supposed to go…’

Watching them casually eat at my table made me feel like I was turning into ash and drifting away.

‘When the hell are you guys going home?’

This wasn’t the scenario I had imagined.

I thought they’d use my “illness” as an excuse and kidnap Eunsu in the middle of the night or something dramatic like that.

But no.

These supposedly refined young masters had adapted into something like clumsy farmhands.

And without complaint.

Even when Yunchan looked like he wanted to argue with me, he’d shut his mouth, go to his room, and come back calm.

I didn’t know what kind of magic Yoo Iseo used, but since he always went with Yunchan during those moments, it was definitely his doing.

‘It’s like I’ve got four oxen instead of people.’

They might lack skill, but they had strength.

Give them a task, and they got it done.

It was driving me insane.

My threat about making them work hard had only half worked.

‘Damn it. Even after coming back exhausted, they still won’t say they want to leave.’

Stubborn bastards.

Then again, I wasn’t exactly easy either.

Before pushing them to the brink, I decided to warm them up by making them till the remaining field.

No electric cultivators.

No modern tools.

Just pure, back-to-basics farming—shovels and pitchforks.

“Technology didn’t just stop progressing. We’ve got self-driving cars and smartphones that are basically portable computers. You’re telling me agriculture didn’t benefit at all?”

As I handed them the tools, Dojun narrowed his eyes.

A logical argument, for once.

But I had a perfect counter.

“If you don’t like it, go home. I’ve got nothing to lose.”

“You’re seriously going to keep acting this cocky? This filthy, smelly land—I’ll tear it all apart someday.”

“Sure. If I’m still alive by then.”

Among all of them, Yunchan reacted the most.

He hated sweating, loved lounging around—your typical spoiled prince.

No wonder he hated being forced to work in the dirt.

‘Still, he can’t actually do anything here.’

According to Secretary Choi, even this land had been personally purchased by Chairman Seong.

As long as that shadow loomed over me, even Yunchan’s family couldn’t touch it.

In the original story, the Seong Group collapsed because of Chanyeong.

But I had already changed that.

Which meant Chairman Seong wouldn’t die from stress watching it fall apart.

‘As long as he’s alive and well, I’m safe.’

So I kept pushing, even throwing in jokes at those idiots who kept talking about me being sick.

“Ah…”

But suddenly, Yunchan turned pale like he’d committed a grave sin, biting his lips.

“…Sorry. You look so healthy, I just… didn’t think…”

Stop talking casually and apologize properly, idiot.

You’re younger than Chanyeong.

“I-I didn’t mean it like I wanted you to die. Really. I’m sorry.”

His awkward panic felt strange.

Was there something in his past?

He usually acted like a delinquent, but right now, he looked like a terrified golden retriever.

“Hey, I’m not dying. I was joking.”

“…Don’t die.”

Even after I admitted it was a joke, his anxiety didn’t fade.

He even started biting his nails, so I grabbed his hand to stop him—

and then pulled him into a hug.

“Hey, it’s fine. Relax.”

“Ugh…”

Like Janggun, he buried his face into my shoulder and sniffled.

Since he was way bigger than me, it felt more like I was being hugged than the other way around.

I awkwardly patted his broad back until he gradually calmed down.

“W-What the hell?!”

Coming back to his senses, Yunchan shoved me away in shock.

Before I could react, I nearly fell flat onto the ground.