TATMFL - 62

Two days later, in the late afternoon as the festival began, Raon held a large sign in her hands.

“…What’s with this tacky slogan?”

“Come see caricatures drawn by the Goddess of the Painting Department!”

Below the text was an illustration of Raon’s face, skillfully rendered to highlight her beauty.

The signs carried by students from other grades responsible for promotions were no less flashy.

And it seemed like everyone chosen for promotions had been selected for their looks—every one of them was strikingly attractive. Only then did Raon understand why her classmates hadn’t bothered to consult her before assigning her to this task.

Feeling awkward, Raon rubbed her cheek and spun the embarrassing sign around in her hands. She knew she was beautiful—that wasn’t news—but she hadn’t expected her face to be used for promotional purposes like this.

After exchanging greetings with her fellow promoters, Raon glanced around.

It was already bustling, even though the main events were still two hours away. A few booths had already started operating.

‘Hye-sung said he’d be participating in the festival this time too.’

Maybe she’d drop by his booth later if she had some free time.

Raon recalled Hye-sung’s excitement last night as he prepared for the festival, dressed sharply in a suit, and directed her gaze toward where the business department’s booth was located.

Then, almost absentmindedly, she wondered:

Is Han Do-kyung there too?

________________________________________

Fireworks shot up behind the central stage, signaling the official start of the festival as they painted the night sky with bursts of color.

“Hmm.”

With a tray tucked under her arm, Raon pressed on the back of her neck, her expression incredulous.

“I’m pretty sure I agreed to only handle promotions. Can someone explain why I’m stuck here instead?”

A junior pulling drinks out of a cooler chuckled.

“What can we say? You’re just too good at promoting. We’re completely overwhelmed with customers because of you.”

“What?”

“Everyone keeps asking where the ‘Goddess of the Painting Department’ is.”

That damn sign. Raon glared at the text written on the placard she’d carried around all afternoon, now resting at the corner of the booth. Because of that sign, she couldn’t leave the festival even after her promotional duties were long over.

At least she wasn’t assigned to caricature drawing; thanks to her classmates knowing she didn’t do portraits, she was instead relegated to serving drinks. Whether or not that counted as a favor was debatable.

The other members of her promotional team were in similar situations.

Speechless, Raon opened and closed her mouth before letting out a sigh and asking,

“How are we doing on the break-even point?”

The classmate beside her, munching on a snack, grinned and replied,

“We passed it ages ago.”

“Already?”

“All thanks to our amazing promotional team. At this rate, we could stop selling and just hang out for the rest of the night.”

Another classmate passing by chimed in,

“From what I saw, the professors in sculpture haven’t reached theirs yet.”

By now, more and more fourth-year students had gathered, chatting animatedly. Amidst the lively chatter, Raon pulled out her phone. She hadn’t checked it in hours, but there was a missed call notification from just a few minutes ago—it was from Hye-sung.

Apparently, he had tried contacting her when she didn’t show up at the promised time.

But she still couldn’t leave her post.

As Raon surveyed the bustling painting department booth, she opened her messaging app.

She sent a quick message saying she wouldn’t be able to visit today and sighed softly. Then, rubbing her nose, she frowned slightly.

The festival grounds were teeming with Manifestors, and the overwhelming mix of pheromones in the air was hard to ignore—even for someone like her, who was notably insensitive to them.

Her thoughts grew complicated.

Surrounded by so many pheromones, she finally began to fully grasp that she had manifested as an Omega.

Though she’d been taking the suppressants prescribed by Professor Yang, they hadn’t made her feel any different—they were just pills, indistinguishable from vitamins. That might be why she’d managed to somewhat brush off the reality of being an Omega. After all, she exhibited almost none of the typical Omega traits.

‘Omega…’

An inexplicable unease churned in her stomach, and Raon bit down lightly on her tongue.

Still, none of the pheromones swirling around her felt particularly unpleasant.

It was more like walking into a perfume shop—her nose tingled slightly, but nothing more.

This was a far cry from Do-kyung’s pheromones, which triggered such an intense rejection response in her.

Professor Yang had suggested that her reaction might stem from perceiving Do-kyung’s pheromones during a threatening situation. He assured her it would likely improve over time.

Raon absentmindedly rubbed her reddened nostrils and looked down.

But…

Her ears immediately flushed bright red.

[Ah, ah! Yes, yes, so good, hng, more, more… pant!]

Of all things, that memory surfaced, and Raon furrowed her brow, flustered.

There was no denying it—she had clung to Do-kyung in those moments, clearly enjoying herself. It was impossible to claim she was repulsed by his pheromones.

‘Hah.’

Trying to hide her blushing face behind her palm, Raon let out an internal sigh.

Just then—

“I heard Business is going crazy right now.”

Raon’s hand froze mid-reach as she accepted a drink passed to her by a junior. But she quickly composed herself, nodding casually.

“Thanks.”

Hiding her flushed face behind the cup, Raon listened intently to her classmates’ conversation.

“Business? Oh, the one with the extreme Alpha?”

“Yeah. Their booth is packed because of him.”

Sipping from her paper cup, Raon blinked. She hadn’t expected to hear about Do-kyung while casually wondering about him earlier.

“Is he still there? If he is, we should go check it out.”

“Nah, I heard he left after stopping by briefly.”

“Oh, wasn’t he hanging out with Ji Hye-sung? The only person he ever really got along with in the business department? Apparently, they just had a short conversation.”

This mention of Hye-sung made Raon narrow her eyes slightly.

Her classmates’ gazes turned toward her.

“If you’re talking about Hye-sung, isn’t he Raon’s friend?”

Raon nodded readily.

Then she stood up. Her lively classmates, who had been chatting animatedly, followed her with their eyes.

“…? Where are you going?”

“My friend is here.”

“Huh?”

Turning their heads in the direction Raon was looking, they spotted the very person they had just been talking about and widened their eyes in surprise.

Standing at the entrance of the booth, Hye-sung—dressed sharply in a sleek black suit—was waving at Raon.

Raon set down the empty cup she had been holding and quickly walked over to him.

“What are you doing here?”

“I heard everyone who secured today’s sales could leave, so I made my escape as soon as I could.”

So it seemed his department had also surpassed their break-even point long ago, despite the earlier talk of how packed it was.

Hye-sung glanced around as if searching for something, then let out a small sigh of relief.

“Why were you looking around like that?”

“Hmm? It’s nothing.”

Shaking his head slightly, Hye-sung asked,

“Are you busy?”

“No, I’m just helping out after finishing my tasks. I’m not busy.”

Hye-sung beamed, clearly pleased.

“That’s great. Then come join me for a walk around the festival, Raon.”

________________________________________

As time passed, the festival grew livelier. Around this time, the invited singer was taking the stage at the central venue.

“There are too many people…”

Raon furrowed her brow faintly as the mix of pheromones tickled her nose.

It didn’t matter whether they were from Alphas or Omegas—it seemed the alcohol flowing freely had loosened everyone’s inhibitions. Muttering about why incidents were so common at festivals, Raon narrowed her eyes.

Even though they were seated quite far from the central stage due to the overwhelming crowd, the area was still packed with people. All she could see were heads blocking the view of the stage.

Deciding to focus on enjoying the music rather than trying to spot the performer, Raon waited for Hye-sung, who had gone to buy drinks, while continuously rubbing her nose. She’d done it so much that her nostrils were slightly red.

The music began, and the singer’s voice echoed through the installed speakers. While listening, Raon wondered if Hye-sung would be able to find his way back safely.

“Ah!”

Suddenly, amidst the surging crowd, someone bumped into Raon, causing her to stagger.

At that moment, a hand grabbed her elbow to steady her.

Simultaneously, a nauseating scent cut through the sea of pheromones, making her stomach churn.

“…!”

Straightening herself awkwardly, Raon whipped her head around to look behind her.

But all she saw were unfamiliar faces.

The piercing pheromone that had assaulted her senses moments ago was already gone.

Her trembling pupils scanned the surroundings restlessly. But there was no one. The person she was looking for had vanished.

“Raon?”

“…Ah.”

By the time Hye-sung returned with drinks, Raon was still staring blankly into the crowd, lost in thought.

“What’s wrong?”

“…Nothing.”

She thought she had sensed Han Do-kyung nearby.

Unable to say such things in front of Hye-sung, Raon swallowed her words and accepted the drink he offered, taking a sip.

As she did, she irritably brushed her elbow where the hand had touched her.

…She was certain it had been Do-kyung’s pheromone.

Sipping her drink to calm her unsettled stomach, Raon scanned the area once more with her eyes.

But he was nowhere to be found. A man taller than most couldn’t simply vanish like that—clear evidence that he had already left.

It was ironic.

The reason she could pick out Do-kyung’s pheromone among the countless others swirling around was because of her intense rejection response to it.

Raon let out a breathy laugh and stared straight ahead. Still, all she could see were the tops of people’s heads.