Chapter 2

Since the people he met here struggled to pronounce “Yeon Yiseo” correctly, he occasionally thought about changing her name. However, perhaps due to the influence of his past life memories, he decided to keep the name Yeon Yiseo. Of course, he was also concerned that hastily changing his name might alter the course of the game. He needed to avoid choices that could potentially change the future as much as possible.

There were quite a few differences between the world of Ahn Heewoong, which Yeon Yiseo referred to as his past life, and the current world. The fact that the military was built on a conscription system was quite surprising for Yeon Yiseo, who found it common knowledge that one could travel by train from Korea to Europe.

However, the most shocking fact for Yeon Yiseo was that Ahn Heewoong’s world lacked the traits of Alpha, Omega, and Beta.

The absence of traits in Ahn Heewoong’s world was a significant shock. For Yeon Yiseo, who had been born and lived in a world where it was natural for most people to manifest as either Alpha or Omega before adulthood, it felt extremely strange and bewildering. In his reality, Betas were actually quite rare, and in some ways, he envied the world Ahn Hee-woong lived in. A world with many Betas—well, that sounded kind of cool.

In Yeon Yiseo’s world, Betas were fewer in number and could not sense the pheromones of the other traits, making it difficult to mix or coexist. While there were significant differences between Ahn Hee-woong’s world and Yeon Yiseo’s world, many aspects were also quite similar.

What had Yeon Yiseo been like in the original story? He tried to recall but found his memories hazy. Seo Eunwoo was described as having sharp eyes resembling a cat, with thin lines and an elegant atmosphere. Compared to that, Yeon Yiseo felt far too ordinary. He wished she were a bit more handsome. Right now, he was just too plain.

He didn’t particularly wish to become involved with someone extraordinary like in the in-game novel. He simply wanted to pursue the best life he could achieve as an ordinary citizen. America was a society built on connections. Knowing many good people would somehow help him, and that was all Yeon Yiseo desired.

He thought it would be nice if he could at least live without entangling herself with Seo Eunwoo, the protagonist of the original game Sickly Villain, even if they couldn’t become friends. If things progressed like in the game, they might be able to interact like friends, but he decided not to have too high expectations.

In any case, Yeon Yiseo worked incredibly hard and endured a lot to build an impressive resume that seemed almost unbelievable for her current situation. The important point was that Yeon Yiseo was able to achieve results commensurate with his efforts.

At 25 years old, Yeon Yiseo managed to secure a job as the second secretary to Ethan A. Scott, the CEO of the global company “Daimin” and the main character of the original game. This was thanks to a recommendation letter from a professor who had positively evaluated him during his desperate studies at university, along with the professor’s connections to a businessman.

Although he hadn’t yet reached the starting point of the original game, the tension and excitement of meeting the game’s characters kept him from sleeping or eating properly the night before his first day at work.

And finally, on the long-awaited first day of work, the secretary entered Ethan’s office to introduce Yeon Yiseo to him.

Ethan stood up and approached as soon as he saw Yeon Yiseo’s face. He hadn’t realized how large his physique was while he was sitting, but standing up, he was struck by how imposing he was. At 197 cm tall, he was overwhelmingly tall. They say Alphas are at least 185 cm, but Ethan seemed to be exceptionally tall among them. Yeon Yiseo, being a Beta at around 175 cm, felt he appeared even larger.

‘Nice to meet you for the first time.’

Ethan was confident and unpretentious. He was the epitome of an Alpha who had been born with everything and lived without any regrets. Ethan extended his hand first. In response to his casual gesture, Yeon Yiseo also took his hand. His hand was appropriately warm and incredibly large.

‘I’ll work hard from now on. Thank you for your guidance.’

‘The pleasure is mine.’

Their first greeting was surprisingly simple. However, even in that brief encounter, Yeon Yiseo could clearly feel the charisma emanating from Ethan.

His penetrating gaze was striking, but above all, the unique vigor radiating from his extraordinarily handsome face was something one couldn’t find in an ordinary person. His appearance resembled a delicately crafted porcelain doll. Being an exceptionally tall Alpha made him even more eye-catching.

Even standing still, he looked like a model, and on top of that, he was a wealthy entrepreneur. It was undoubtedly an absurd setting. That’s why he must have taken on the role of the main protagonist, he reasoned.

So, this incredibly handsome man had accomplished all those amazing things… Yeon Yiseo recalled all the game lines he could never voice out loud and squeezed his eyes shut. It was one thing to imagine characters from a game, but it was another to envision someone living and breathing right in front of him.

He needed to think of something else. Other thoughts. Yes. Height. Let’s think about his physique. Ethan was exceptionally tall. Although the other candidates were also tall, Ethan was the tallest among the target characters.

The height of 197 cm had only seemed vaguely “tall” to him, but seeing it in person felt almost like a CG, making him stare without realizing it. Even when looking at Ethan from a distance, his legs seemed so long that he wondered if his waist was really up there. His appearance felt unreal, almost like a doll or graphic, so he still hadn’t fully adjusted to Ethan.

There were still six months left until the starting point of the original game. Work would begin at the product launch event for a new product that Daimin had been developing for a long time. During that time, Yeon Yiseo simply performed his duties. In fact, he was so busy that he had no time to think about anything else.

Typically, he would start work at 6 AM and finish at 10 PM. Although he was the second secretary, the difference in workload was not significant; it was just that their assigned areas were different, so he couldn’t expect support from his colleagues. Given that situation, he had to almost give up his personal life, but those busy and arduous days were compensated by his salary.

In reality, that salary didn’t last long, so the financial joy didn’t last either, but thinking that this amount was what his abilities were worth made it somewhat bearable. The thought that he couldn’t continue his current lifestyle without earning this much helped as well. If he could endure for just two years, he would receive the best treatment wherever he went in the same industry, so he had to persevere no matter what.

It had already been four months since he started living this way.

“Ugh. I need to get to work.”

Yeon Yiseo resumed his movements, which had paused for a moment to drink coffee. As he looked at the black letters filling the monitor, his mind couldn’t help but race with complicated thoughts.

Even though the starting point of the original game was approaching, there were no signs of anything beginning. In fact, Seo Eunwoo, the protagonist of Sickly Villain and Ethan’s lover, should have visited the company at least once, but that hadn’t happened either. Even after checking several times, he hadn’t received any schedule notifications or visit announcements.

“Does the CEO’s fiancé not come to the company?”

When he asked that question, he received a response that it was the first time they had heard of it. When he explained that he had a strange dream today, which seemed to confuse him, the first secretary, Natalie, began lamenting that she felt like she was going to die lately, allowing him to brush it off somehow.

Despite his lingering doubts, searching the internet for “Ethan, Seo Eunwoo engagement” yielded no substantial information. Even though Seo Eunwoo’s family was relatively well-known in American politics. What on earth was happening?

That question was soon answered.

Seo Eunwoo appeared at the company.

Yeon Yiseo’s movements, which had been busy going back and forth in the office, came to a sudden halt. He never expected to see Seo Eunwoo at such a timing.

“Is Ethan in there?”

“Uh, just a moment. I have an appointment with the CEO—…”

“It’s fine since you contacted me. Let him in.”

Instead of the dazed Yeon Yiseo, Natalie attempted to stop Seo Eunwoo, but at that moment, Ethan emerged from the CEO’s office with a stoic expression, and the small commotion was resolved. Seo Eunwoo smiled brightly once again and opened his mouth to the various gazes directed at him.

“I’m sorry for coming without a prior appointment; I just wanted to inform the CEO in a hurry.”

Having finished talking with the CEO, who could say anything to the staff below? They could only awkwardly smile along with Seo Eunwoo.