I Became a Villainous Character with a Limited Lifespan

Episode 44

It was about the size of a medium-sized dog. I’m not sure what breed it was, but it wasn’t something you’d see often in Korea.

“Seeing the leash connected to a line…looks like the owner must have let go of the leash.”

“Huff, huff.”

The dog that approached Seung-hyun through the bench legs tilted its head while panting. The fact that it wasn’t afraid of people at all and had a face full of curiosity made it clear it was a mischievous one raised with love. 

“But your owner will still worry. What if you just run over like this.”

Seung-hyun said while lightly petting the dog’s head. The dog, looking satisfied as if liking the touch of a stranger’s hand, soon perked up its ears and barked once looking in the direction it had run from.

“Woof!”

“Leo. What if you just run off as you please…huh?”

The man, who seemed to have been running around looking for his dog, catching his breath, made a surprised face upon seeing Seung-hyun.

“The one I saw at the mart that time…right?”

It was the man who had helped Seung-hyun when he suddenly had a seizure at the mart not long ago. Who would have thought we’d meet again here. Seung-hyun awkwardly got up from the bench and greeted the man. 

“Fancy meeting you here again.”

“I know, right. Wow. This neighborhood may be small but…I don’t live here, so I don’t come often. But how did we happen to run into each other like this?”

The man sat naturally next to Seung-hyun, winding the dog’s leash tightly around his hand as if never to let go again.

“Are you feeling a bit better? Did you go to the hospital?”

“I’m fine. It was because I couldn’t take my medication on time. I’m taking it well now, so that shouldn’t happen.”

“Medication?”

The good-natured man asked with a worried face. Hide it, or no. He’s someone who will just pass by anyway. After contemplating briefly, Seung-hyun said,

“My health isn’t good.”

“Ah…that must be very hard.”

Even at the vague words, the man made a face of sincere sympathy. Somehow, he was someone who made you feel at ease.

“Shall I introduce you to my doctor? My father’s health was poor until last year too, but he got much better after the doctor took good care of him.”

“It’s alright. It’s not a problem with the doctor.”

“Ah…I’m sorry. I meddled too much.”

“No. It’s okay.”

Seung-hyun smiled, seeing the man worrying if he had meddled too much belatedly. 

“I don’t mind.”

“Is that so. That’s a relief. I get nagged at a lot by my family to stop meddling unnecessarily.”

The man said, seeming relieved while brushing his chest. Well, there are certainly people who dislike this kind of meddling, but Seung-hyun didn’t find that excessive kindness uncomfortable. 

“I was feeling bad that I didn’t properly thank you then.”

“No, no. I just did what I had to do.”

“I should have at least gotten your number, but I was so out of it I just let you go.”

“Haha. I thought the same thing. I kept worrying if you got home okay.”

The man laughed brightly. It was obvious he was someone raised with love. Although Seung-hyun hadn’t met many people since becoming Han Seung-hyun, there were enough to compare in many ways. 

‘Strictly speaking, Ju Jae-young is like that too, but…that side is a bit different.’

“Leo begged to go on a walk with me, so I delayed my schedule to go home and came out for a walk…Leo, did you know this would happen and told me to come out?”

“Kying?”

Leo, who was playing while digging the ground firmly holding the leash, tilted his head upon hearing his name.

“This guy. What are we going to do with you digging the ground like this.”

“Woof woof!”

The man pretended to be angry at Leo, who had dug the ground quite a bit in the brief moment of being unattended, but Leo just turned his head, acting coy, not paying any attention.

“He must be frustrated to come out for a walk and do this.”

“Still…I told him to only dig at home so many times.”

“We can still talk while walking, can’t we.”

Seung-hyun said, getting up from his seat. The man, alternating glances between Leo and Seung-hyun for a moment, let out a small sigh saying ‘this troublemaker’. 

“I raised him so dotingly that he thinks he’s the king, not even giving his paw if there’s no snack.”

“You must cherish him a lot.”

Although they had only met twice, he was strangely someone who made people feel at ease. Is this what it means for someone to be likeable as a person? Seung-hyun continued the conversation, walking side by side with the man.

“I can’t say much myself but…it’s a problem that my parents cherish him too much. At first, I insisted on bringing him, you know. Back then, they told me to take care of everything myself, but at some point, my parents started cherishing him more…when I said I’d take him when I get married, they jumped up and down saying no way.”

“Marriage? You must have gotten married early.”

He looked to be a college student. Well, it’s not strange to marry early in a chaebol family.

“I’m not that young…I’ll be thirty-one soon.”

Just as he was thinking that, the man, with a slightly embarrassed face, hesitated for a moment before telling his age. Surprised by the age exceeding his expectations, Seung-hyun apologized in embarrassment.

“I’m sorry. I didn’t know…”

“No, it’s okay. Ah, come to think of it, we didn’t even know each other’s names.”

Seung-hyun, who only then realized he had forgotten to introduce himself in the strangely comfortable atmosphere, made a late self-introduction.

“I’m Han Seung-hyun. As for my age…I’m twenty-nine.”

“I thought you’d be younger. You have a baby face.”

The man said with a surprised look. Strictly speaking, it’s true that Han Seung-hyun has a baby face too, but it felt strange to hear he has a baby face from someone who looks much younger.

“My name is…ah! Wait a minute! Leo!”

The moment the man was about to say his name, Leo discovered something and tried to run towards it. His strength was so great that the man almost fell forward.

“This guy, really…huh?”

The man, who was being dragged in the direction Leo was running, made a surprised face as if he discovered something. The man’s steps headed towards where Leo was trying to run.

“That’s my husband’s car. He did say he’d come to pick me up but…ah. There was a call. I’m going to get scolded.”

The man took out his cell phone from his pocket, checked the missed call records, and made a face like he was in big trouble.

“Actually, there’s another reason I couldn’t take Leo when I got married. My husband and I didn’t get along well from the beginning…but somehow Leo really likes my husband. Who was the one who fed, walked, and cherished him. This traitor.”

“Woof woof!”

The man checked there was no one in the car and looked around.

“I guess he’s looking for me in person since I didn’t answer the phone. If I meet him, I’ll get nagged again asking why I carry a cell phone if I’m going to keep it on silent every time.”

He grumbled, but even without seeing, it seemed like he had a good relationship with his husband. Well, if he’s this comfortable with a stranger, he must provide stability to his spouse too.

“I said I’d be back before lunch, but he’s always so impatient. Leo. Look for the person, not the car. Can’t you smell him?”

“Woof woof!”

The man told Leo to look for his husband, but Leo only circled near the car. After watching for a moment, the man sighed as if giving up.

“I’m the fool for counting on you.”

“You two must have a good relationship.”

“Hmm…I guess so. That’s right.”

Seeing that they didn’t get along well from the beginning, was it an arranged marriage at first? Well, it’s not a rare story.

Just thinking about Tae-sung and Seon-hu, the main characters of this novel, it was like that. Tae-sung, who hated the traits of alphas and omegas themselves, disliked Seon-hu, but before long, he began to feel drawn to Seon-hu’s sunny personality….

‘Come to think of it, I think Seon-hu also raised a dog. He couldn’t see it often since it was at his family home, but he occasionally came to the family home and walked it together with Tae-sung….’

“At first, we didn’t get along well…it’s all because I made the person. Well. It’s okay now.”

The man said, smiling mischievously. Well, if it’s someone like this, anyone would have no choice but to think so, and Seung-hyun also nodded in agreement.

‘But somehow…the more I hear the story, the more I get an inexplicable uneasy feeling….’

“Ah. Come to think of it, I was introducing myself. I’m Lee Seon-hu.”

The moment he felt an unexplainable uneasiness and heard the man’s familiar name, Seung-hyun froze on the spot. Seon-hu, Lee Seon-hu?

‘No. There must be more than one person in the world named Lee Seon-hu. But…no way….’

“By any chance, is your husband….”

“Lee Seon-hu. Why aren’t you answering your phone….”

Just as he was about to ask if the husband’s name was Han Tae-sung, a familiar voice called out to Seon-hu from behind. The expressions of the two people who simultaneously looked back were markedly different.

“Leo kept going off on his own, so I couldn’t pay attention to my phone. Ah, this person is….”

“…Han Seung-hyun?”

Tae-sung’s expression hardened upon discovering Seung-hyun. Seeing his husband’s expression stiffen, Seon-hu stopped talking in the strange atmosphere.