"You really forgot everything?"
Choi Hyena closed the distance in an instant.
Her face was so red, I didn't even need to reach out to feel her breath on me.
Even with her cheeks blooming with a fiery blush, Choi Hyena was breathtakingly beautiful.
I knew she was dressed to the nines when we first met, but seeing her this close, almost nose to nose, made me feel like I was suffocating.
No matter how many top-tier beauties I'd met in a row, like Iris, Cheon Yeohwa, and Hanlael, as if I were living my best life, it didn't mean I could act nonchalantly when a woman like this locked eyes with me.
*Come to think of it, Director was pretty gorgeous too.*
She might have been smaller than other beast-kin, but her overall proportions were perfect, putting most models to shame.
Besides, her snow-white fur and golden eyes were captivating enough that I still thought about them from time to time.
"Hey."
Before I knew it, a chilling voice pierced my ear as I got lost in my own thoughts.
A shiver ran down my spine as if I'd fallen into an icy mountain stream.
"Are you thinking about another woman right now?"
Choi Hyena, who had been grabbing my collar, suddenly grabbed my face with both hands.
"…Of course not."
I had to lie to survive.
"Really?"
"Am I crazy enough to do that in this situation?"
There were still too many things I wanted to do in this life, so I forced myself to look away from her murderous gaze.
I wanted to finish that first night with Iris that had been interrupted by some strange interference, and I wanted to get her out of that stuffy prison as soon as possible.
If I had the chance, I'd love to travel the fantasy world with her.
Besides, Cheon Yeohwa, who often gave me the feeling of being a good wife and mother despite her first impression, had somehow made building a cozy home together one of my goals.
I was absolutely certain that my relationship with Iris and Cheon Yeohwa was close to being lovers, or even more than that, but my relationship with Choi Hyena was a bit more ambiguous.
"…Then answer me. Did you really forget everything?"
"Yeah."
"…"
Choi Hyena seemed genuinely shocked.
"You told me to forget."
"Y-Yeah, but still… How could you…"
I couldn't say I didn't understand her reaction.
Strictly speaking, Choi Hyena was my first, and even if it was unavoidable, I still took her first time.
We spent the night together, mingling our bodies not just once, but multiple times.
As a man, I should have taken responsibility, but Choi Hyena had clearly told me to forget everything that happened in the gate.
If I said I remembered everything that happened back then, it wouldn't be any different from saying I would take responsibility for Choi Hyena.
*Even though I've already decided to build a harem, what difference does it make…?*
Choi Hyena's background was the problem.
The Seongbuk Choi Clan was known for their lineage of women who displayed outstanding magical talent.
Choi Youngok's grandmother and Choi Hyena both possessed exceptional talent, reaching the 3rd Circle at the young age of 21. In contrast, her grandfather was just an ordinary person.
It wouldn't be hard to predict the Seongbuk Choi Clan's reaction if I were to accept the only granddaughter and heir of the Seongbuk Choi Clan, where women hold a much higher status than men, as a member of my harem.
-Kill that bastard.
Of course, they wouldn't try to assassinate the benefactor who had saved their granddaughter's life, but it was clear that if someone she'd even considered marrying now declared his ambition to start a harem, it would be nothing short of tarnishing the Seongbuk Choi Clan's honor.
I had anticipated things would turn out this way, so why did I accept the blind date? It was simple.
I was infatuated with Choi Hyena's photo, but I wondered if such a beautiful, rich young woman would ever recognize me as a potential husband.
The answer was no.
Would an ultra-rich, diamond-spoon beauty suddenly ask a poor beggar she just met to marry her? Of course not. There was no way we'd even go on a second date, let alone get married.
That's why I was confident that Choi Hyena wouldn't accept me.
So I figured it would be more beneficial in the long run to accept Choi Youngok's request and owe her a debt.
Huh? But what's this?
On the day of the blind date, we got trapped in an isolated gate, and after all sorts of things happened, I ended up not only sleeping with Choi Hyena, but also risking my life to save her.
Thanks to that, the Seongbuk Choi Clan now owed me an undeniable debt.
If that was all there was to it, I could have basked in the joy of achieving my initial plan, but the incident happened afterward.
I had noticed that Choi Hyena's gaze and attitude towards me had been strange ever since I was hospitalized, but I never expected her to be so blatant in expressing her feelings and say, "I have a crush on you!"
But I had two lovely lovers that I needed to take responsibility for, so I couldn't accept her feelings.
And there would be more to come.
Of course, I wasn't trying to disrespect Iris and Cheon Yeohwa by putting them in the harem without their consent.
I was planning to tell them everything soon and ask for their understanding.
It goes without saying that even if I asked for their understanding, it was uncertain whether both of them would allow me to have a harem.
If they refused, I was willing to do anything they asked, except give up the other one, but that wasn't the case with Choi Hyena.
To begin with, Choi Hyena wasn't my woman. That night, mingling our bodies was just a process to save Choi Hyena's life.
At least, not yet.
"Really…"
I had two options here.
"You really forgot…?"
Man up and confess first, then get them to accept the harem?
Or push her away?
"…Do you remember what I told you last time? That I have two girlfriends."
No sooner had I finished speaking than Choi Hyena's eyes began to tremble pathetically.
"T-That was just you being boastful, wasn't it…?"
Without answering, I just looked at Choi Hyena with a heavy gaze. Only then did she realize that I was serious, and her expression turned sour.
"…I'll tell you in advance, I have no intention of giving up either of them. No, there will be more in the future."
In fact, Choi Hyena was quite familiar with polygamy.
Some of her relatives had multiple wives, and among the upper class, there were fewer people with only one wife.
Still, as soon as she heard that Kang Hyunwoo had two more women she didn't know about, Choi Hyena felt like her heart was sinking.
She felt like she was about to burst into tears if she relaxed even a little bit.
Her heart ached.
She felt stuffy and couldn't breathe properly.
She hadn't even confessed her feelings yet, but it already felt like she had been rejected.
Kang Hyunwoo, of all people.
A beggar, of all people.
*Who do you think you are, rejecting me…?*
Just as her frustration was about to explode, Choi Hyena gritted her teeth and hardened her heart.
It was far better to think rationally like a mage than to sit here and bawl like a fool.
Was it right to let Kang Hyunwoo, who was spouting such brazen nonsense about having two more women and planning to have even more in the future, go like this?
Choi Hyena's answer was no.
"…Take responsibility."
"What?"
Choi Hyena threw out the biggest bluff of her life and made up her mind.
If that was all it took to hold onto Kang Hyunwoo, she didn't care what happened afterward.
"I'm pregnant, so take responsibility."
"…?"
The bluff was successful.
Kang Hyunwoo was in so much pain that he wanted to collapse right then and there.
*M-Me, a dad…?*
In fact, Choi Hyena was physically unable to get pregnant. Not because she was infertile, but because the upper class received the Church's blessing from birth, putting them in a state of constant contraception.
No matter how hard they tried to manage it, children didn't always do what their parents wanted them to, so they had to prevent the misfortune of having a child by donating to the Church when the child was born, which granted them a semi-permanent blessing of contraception.
The blessing was automatically lifted when a wedding was held at the church.
This was such a long-standing tradition in high society that there was no one who didn't know about it, but who was Kang Hyunwoo?
He was the poorest of the poor, nearly freezing to death in a corner of the market on a winter day.
There was no way he would know about the ways of the upper class.
The only thing that flashed through Kang Hyunwoo's mind was the thick ejaculate that he had ejaculated into her womb without using a condom.
*How many shots did I fire…?*
Does anyone remember the number of grains of rice they've eaten in their life?
Of course not.
There was no way Kang Hyunwoo would remember how many shots he had irresponsibly fired either.
That irresponsibility was about to come back to haunt Kang Hyunwoo as a heavy responsibility.
Kang Hyunwoo suddenly recalled the advice his high school Korean teacher had given him.
-You monkey bastards! Listen up, from the olden days, men! If you can't keep your mouths and dicks in check, your life is over! You got that?!
Ah, I miss you, teacher…
As all sorts of thoughts crowded together and messed with Kang Hyunwoo's mind, Choi Hyena was smiling.
The worries she had been having were all being rewarded by Kang Hyunwoo's flustered expression.
Choi Hyena quickly formulated a plan.
Of course, the pregnancy was just a bluff, but nothing was ever true from the beginning.
Just as magic was once the lies of con artists, she could make her bluff a reality in the future.
The time it takes for a woman's belly to grow when pregnant is about 16 weeks.
If she could make up an excuse using magic, she could maintain the bluff for up to 5 months.
*…If I lift the Church's blessing in the meantime…*
She could become 1 day pregnant instead of 5 months pregnant.
In fact, Choi Hyena hadn't intended to play such a strong hand from the start.
She was going to continue meeting him little by little, confirm her feelings for each other, and then get a confession from him.
But now that she knew he had two other women, she couldn't just sit back and watch.
She remembered her grandmother's childhood advice that a man who had no backbone in his lower body should be held tightly from the very beginning.
*I can earn the money.*
Kang Hyunwoo, who suddenly had to take responsibility for a woman who was imagining she was pregnant, trembled violently, as if there had been an earthquake in his eyes.
In that moment, the faces of Iris and Cheon Yeohwa, whom he had left behind in another world, flashed by, and a small salvation came down.
Knock, knock-
-Young Lady, the mistress is calling for you.
"Tsk."
Choi Hyena clicked her tongue and stepped back at the maid's voice from beyond the door.
Only then could I breathe a sigh of relief.
"Lucky you?"
"…"
Choi Hyena had a faint smile on her lips as she said that, but her eyes were colder than ever.
Was this how the neighbor's dog, who was about to be neutered, felt?
I treasured my miserable feelings in a corner of my heart as I followed Choi Hyena to what looked like a drawing room.
"Oh my, did Hyena give you a tour of the mansion?"
Unlike Choi Youngok, who looked at us with a warm smile as we stuck close together, I was dying inside.
What would she say if I told her that I had made her only granddaughter pregnant?
Would she be furious and try to kill me, or would she have us get married tonight? No one knew.
"I'm sorry to interrupt your good time."
"…It's alright."
Choi Hyena, who was sitting next to me, poked me in the ribs with her finger.
What answer did she want that she was expressing her dissatisfaction again?
"The reason I called you here is because I wanted to reward you for saving my granddaughter this time."
"Ah, about that…"
"The orphanage, right? I heard about it from Hyena in advance, and I've already taken care of it."
"…Yes?"
I couldn't help but glance at Choi Hyena, rolling my eyes.
Choi Hyena was smiling and mouthing something.
'I…did…it…?'
At that moment, I almost burst out laughing.
How could a person's personality change so drastically? Or maybe her personality was always like this.
"You can hear the details from Hyena later."
"Thank you."
I bowed my head sincerely.
"There's no need to thank us. This isn't the reward we promised you. Besides, we owe Hyunwoo an undeniable debt. A very big debt that we can't repay with anything."
Choi Youngok's gaze briefly turned to Choi Hyena.
Her gaze was so gentle that it reminded me of the head nun at the orphanage.
"Even if we give you a huge reward, you shouldn't thank us, Hyunwoo. We're the ones who should be thanking you. Besides, we have no intention of replacing it with just a building and protecting the safety of the orphanage staff?"
Choi Youngok snapped her fingers, and a maid who opened the door and came in placed a rather large box on the table.
"Hyena said she needed some magical equipment, right?"
At Choi Youngok's suggestion that I open the box, I cautiously opened it.
I couldn't believe my eyes at the contents of the box that was revealed.
"This is our sincerity and a token of our gratitude."