Chapter 66

"White Lion 7th Squad, two objectives. Eliminate the heads of Armed Units A through F. Occupy and blockade the two arms depots belonging to Units C and E in the western mountain region of Country Y. Confirm?"

"Confirmed."

Inside the classified meeting room, nine White Lion 7th Squad members—reconvened for an international military aid operation—were quickly memorizing the faces and identity info on the big screen. Lead sniper and captain Gu Yunchi sat at the front, with Wei Xing, the lookout and explosives handler, just behind him on the left.

"We deploy tomorrow at noon. You'll start operations one day ahead of the Army units. Mission duration is tentatively seven days." The Army deputy commander beside the screen braced both hands on the table edge. "Of course, if you boys can wrap things up early and come home safe, I'll be even happier."

"Understood."

Walking out of the meeting room, Wei Xing yawned twice in a row. "They said it was just a meeting, and now they've shipped us back to the front line."

He'd been in City S for two nights, both spent in bars. This morning, when he showed up for the meeting, he still had last night's alcohol smell clinging to him. The deputy commander had torn into him on the spot, then kicked him into the meeting room to finish the job.

"Captain Gu must be feeling it too, right? Barely back and he's leaving again. That little flame just starting to spark—" Wei Xing blew out a breath. "Pfft. Out again."

"Drinking the night before a mission briefing. Write me a thousand-word self-criticism and turn it in." Gu Yunchi stared at his communicator without looking up. "That's an order from your captain."

Wei Xing: ?

Back in his office, his Mobile Phone buzzed once. Gu Yunchi picked it up. The lock screen showed a message from an unknown number: Hello, Lieutenant Colonel Gu. This is Xu Ze. If it's convenient, I'd appreciate a reply. Sorry for the trouble.

A name that was distant but not that distant—after all, he'd only mentioned it to Lu Heyang a few months ago. Gu Yunchi unlocked his phone, opened the message thread, and replied: What do you need me for?

Only after exiting did he see a message his bodyguard had sent not long ago: That bar owner picked him up from the Company and drove him home.

Attached was a photo of Wen Ran wearing a Neck Ring, looking like a wilted eggplant, being hauled into a car by Zhou Zhuo.

Gu Yunchi shut off his phone, pulled off his shoulder patch as he hit the internal line. "Bring a car downstairs. I need it."

"Told you to stop biking home in the middle of the night after pulling overtime. And now look at you—caught a cold, and your Fenqi Period came early. Serves you right." Zhou Zhuo gripped the steering wheel, rambling on. "I only asked offhand if you wanted to hit a bar tonight, and you told me your Fenqi Period had started. Made me feel so guilty I had to come pick you up—otherwise I'd look totally heartless..."

Wen Ran felt like a giant fly was buzzing in his ear. Annoying as hell. He curled up in the back seat, neck hunched. "You're so freaking chatty."

"I drove all the way here to do you a favor and you're complaining I'm chatty!"

"You still haven't given me that five-hundred-yuan Blue Glass top-up card..." Wen Ran's head was spinning. "Go get it for me, quick."

"Eat, eat, eat! All you think about is that stupid expensive bread! Those number tags are for customers—stop sneaking them out on me!"

They reached the entrance of Little Alley. Zhou Zhuo killed the engine, got out, and hauled Wen Ran from the back seat. Gripping his arm, he walked fast. Wen Ran was forced into a half-jog, gasping for air, deeply regretting his decision to go to work today.

The night before last, Gu Yunchi had reminded him his heat was coming soon. Wen Ran had his doubts, but over the past two days he'd obediently put on his Neck Ring just in case. Last night he worked past eleven, missed the last Subway, and chose to ride a shared bike home. The autumn wind at night hit him straight on, and his throat started hurting on the spot.

So this morning, when he felt off, he just figured it was a cold. He popped two pills and went to work. The result: while he was modeling, his Neck Ring started beeping, alerting him that his Fenqi Period was about to begin.

'After an omega is influenced by Alpha Pheromone, they can be easily induced into heat—especially between high-compatibility pairs.'—Hazy and half-formed, that sentence surfaced in Wen Ran's mind. He couldn't remember where he'd seen it, or who'd said it. Stranger still, it rang out in Gu Yunchi's voice.

By the time they reached the stairwell, his arm was aching from being yanked. Wen Ran really couldn't take Zhou Zhuo's slaughterhouse-style lack of mercy anymore. He wrenched free. "Okay, I'll go up by myself."

"You still have Inhibitor, right?" Zhou Zhuo watched Wen Ran gripping the railing, struggling up the stairs. "Call me if anything happens. I might not pick up."

"Got it. Remember to get the Blue Glass card."

"Get it my ass!"

Only after he heard the door shut on the fourth floor did Zhou Zhuo turn and leave.

Retracing his steps, he walked back into the Little Alley. From a distance, he spotted an Alpha coming toward him. Even thirty-some meters away, he could tell the guy had a face that hit hard—handsome in a punchy way. Wind blew from one end of the alley to the other, carrying the Alpha's Pheromone with it. Zhou Zhuo froze for a beat, registering that the guy was S-Class.

And he'd smelled this Pheromone before. At Shi'er Point Bar, the night before last.

That college kid who'd asked Wen Ran to mix him a drink.

Zhou Zhuo immediately slowed his pace. After studying the guy's outfit, he decided he probably wasn't a college student, but the shirt and pants really didn't look like normal workwear either.

As they drew closer, the Alpha's gaze didn't linger on his face for even half a second. Total dismissal.

They were about to brush past each other when Zhou Zhuo, for some reason, stopped. He turned around. "You here to see Li Shu?"

The Alpha stopped too and glanced back at him. "You just ask people that when you bump into them on the street?"

An unhurried tone, but it shut Zhou Zhuo down with surgical precision. He stalled for a second, then laughed. "I trust my memory. You went to Shi'er Point Bar the night before last, right? No other meaning. Li Shu isn't feeling well today. If you're here for him, you can head back."

"Then why do you think I showed up at such a convenient time?" the Alpha countered, calm as anything.

This time Zhou Zhuo really froze. It was a workday. Wen Ran had asked for leave and gone home, and right behind him this Alpha had shown up—and he knew the exact address. What did that mean? It meant Wen Ran had probably told him himself.

"No way..." The little iron tree, blooming behind his back without him knowing? Was it love at first sight the other night? Zhou Zhuo's expression went complicated. "You two... shouldn't be. He clearly has someone he likes already."

The Alpha's face was blank. "He better."

After saying that, he didn't bother with Zhou Zhuo anymore and walked off. Zhou Zhuo muttered to himself the whole way back to the car. Thinking about it, he still wasn't at ease, so he called Wen Ran. It took forever to pick up. The sound of rushing water on the other end—he was probably washing his face.

Not bothering with any of that, Zhou Zhuo opened his mouth and just started yelling. "Lock the door, you hear me?! Anyone you meet at a bar—how could they be any good?! And you gave them your address? How generous of you! And today you tipped him off yourself, right? It's not like some Alpha had you tailed. He probably isn't that much of a freak... Use your Inhibitor fast. I'm sitting in the car waiting. Call me back in ten minutes or I'm kicking the door down!"

Wen Ran only caught the last line when he turned off the faucet. He didn't get why Zhou Zhuo was being so annoying today. He mumbled something like 'just go home, you don't need to worry about me' and hung up.

When Gu Yunchi reached the fourth floor, omega Pheromone had already started seeping out through the door crack. The whole hallway smelled sweet. One of his bodyguards was spraying Blocker on Wen Ran's front door to keep the Pheromone from spreading further. Seeing Gu Yunchi arrive, he gave a small nod, packed up the Blocker, and headed downstairs.

Gu Yunchi turned his Wristband up to the highest setting and knocked.

Ten seconds passed and no one opened. Gu Yunchi pulled out his key and let himself in.

The moment he stepped inside, he saw the Fighter Jet Model at the far end of the living room. In this tiny apartment, Wen Ran had somehow squeezed a shelf next to the cabinet just to put the model up, making sure it was the first thing you saw when you opened the door. He probably wouldn't have put this much care into a wedding photo.

Gu Yunchi shut the door, walked around the partition bookshelf, and entered the bedroom area. The wardrobe door by the bed was open. Wen Ran's body was hidden behind it—only his legs, kneeling on the floor, were visible. A few pieces of clothing were tossed on the bed.

He seemed to be looking for something inside the wardrobe. He'd been searching for a long time without finding it, so his breathing was getting faster and faster, accompanied by urgent little hums from his nose, like he was about to cry any second.

Gu Yunchi walked up behind him and saw, on the floor on the other side, a box of injection. The box was already open, all ten slots empty. Next to it sat a syringe.

"Why can't I find it..." Wen Ran muttered to himself, nasal voice thick, still rummaging through the wardrobe. "It was clearly in the box..."

Gu Yunchi looked at his thin back and the reddened Gland below the collar of his sweater. "What are you looking for."

Wen Ran flinched hard. He turned his shoulder, tilted his head up to look at Gu Yunchi. His pale face was veiled in a hot flush, his eyes unable to focus quickly.

It took him several seconds to react. His tightly clenched left hand instinctively tucked against his chest, then slowly rose from the floor and moved behind his back. Wen Ran's mouth moved. "Looking... looking for Inhibitor."

Gu Yunchi watched him for a moment, then bent down and picked up the empty box from the floor. Wen Ran seemed to suddenly remember something—his right hand lifted a tiny bit, trying to stop him—but it was already too late.

Class-C high-potency Inhibitor Injection. Prescription drug.

No need to read the dense list of side effects — just picking out a few keywords was enough to know this box of Inhibitors was absolutely not suitable for a normal Omega to use during a normal Fenqi Period. Even if the Hospital prescribed it, they'd only give one or two doses at a time, never a whole box.

His legs gave out. Wen Ran couldn't really stand. Leaning back against the wardrobe, he watched Gu Yunchi suddenly smile—a very faint smile—but it was cold and strange. Then he heard Gu Yunchi say, "I thought you were actually doing okay."

He'd thought it was just that work was hard and demanding. A little too frugal, sure, but at least he ate enough and stayed warm. He deposited money at the bank every month. He saw a doctor when he was sick. On the surface, self-sufficient and orderly.

So he'd only arranged a bodyguard to follow behind him for safety. Everything else, he'd never interfered with.

He should've interfered from the start. Checked every package that arrived, every item he used.

Gu Yunchi pulled Wen Ran's left hand over. His thumb slipped into the palm Wen Ran was trying so hard to clench shut—a fist that gave way easily because he had no strength left. In the burning, wet palm, he felt the last Inhibitor Injection.

"Isn't it right here." Gu Yunchi looked up at him. "What else are you looking for."

"Grindstone..." In his current state, Wen Ran couldn't read Gu Yunchi's emotions. He watched helplessly as Gu Yunchi took the Inhibitor from his hand. He swallowed. "Grind the bottle neck a little. It's easier to open that way."

He'd tried cracking one open with his bare hands once. The result: his hand got cut. For a moment he didn't know whether to inject the Inhibitor first or treat the wound first. In short, a total mess.

"You don't need this anymore." Gu Yunchi's tone gave away nothing—no anger, no warmth. "I brought you oral Inhibitor."

Wen Ran panted a couple of times. An overwhelming urgency surged up in his chest—he wanted Gu Yunchi to give the injection back. He tugged at his own hem, restless and agitated. "That one doesn't work."

"How doesn't it work." Gu Yunchi looked at him, calm.

"Too slow. Oral is too slow..." Wen Ran grabbed Gu Yunchi's sleeve, reaching for the injection bottle in his hand. "This one's faster. I need this one."

Gu Yunchi let him keep trying to pry his fingers open, failing again and again, and kept asking, "How slow? Doesn't your Company give special leave for the Fenqi Period?"

Wen Ran suddenly stopped moving. His head drooped. He breathed fast. After a long pause, he said, "They don't give me enough."

"Other coworkers only need two or three days off for their Fenqi Period, because they take Inhibitor and wrap it up fast." Wen Ran lifted his head. A pair of red-rimmed eyes held back tears that refused to fall. His volume jumped, but his voice was shaking. "But I need ten days to get through it. No Company is going to keep an employee who takes off ten days at a time, whenever it happens!"

"Only with this can I be like everyone else. I just want to be like everyone else!"

In college, he could still catch up on coursework after his Fenqi Period ended. But in the workplace, nobody waits for you. Falling behind or missing a project deadline—those are losses you can't recover. Wen Ran had realized this more than a year ago, right after he officially started his job. So he'd gone through his own medical records and Hospital medication lists, found the Inhibitor a doctor had prescribed him before the cleaning mark was removed, and searched all kinds of channels online before he could buy it by the box.

Even Zhou Zhuo and Fang Yisen didn't know about this.

The room went very quiet. Only his breathing remained. His vision was blurred. Wen Ran couldn't make out Gu Yunchi's expression.

"I told you the reason." His shoulders slumped. He held out his right hand toward Gu Yunchi, palm up, pitifully sniffing as he asked softly, "Can you give me the Inhibitor now?"

Gu Yunchi stared at him. He raised his hand and hurled the Inhibitor against the wall on the other side of the room.

A faint sound of shattering. A streak of liquid raced down the wall to the floor.

Wen Ran stared, eyes wide and red, lost and disbelieving, looking at Gu Yunchi. Tears began streaming down his face in a steady line.