“Doctor, what’s wrong with her? Didn’t you tell me her condition wasn’t serious? How has she been unconscious for three days and nights without a single sign of movement?”
The doctor had just reached the ward door, but before he could even step inside, he was anxiously grabbed and interrogated by a red-haired girl.
He had come for a routine check-up, just like any other day, assuming the patient would have woken up long ago. Hearing this, the doctor froze for a moment and instinctively looked toward the interior of the room.
The hospital bed was positioned by the window. The girl lying there was pale, her lips colorless. Her eyes were tightly shut, showing no signs of regaining consciousness.
Yet, even this haggard state could not hide her delicate beauty. Her eyelashes were long, and as the sunlight filtered through the window, it cast a golden glow over her, as if she were plated in gold. Below the corner of her right eye was a small beauty mark—a “tear mole”—hidden by the shadow of her lashes; one wouldn’t even notice it without looking closely.
Bathed in the sunlight, she looked almost transparent, possessing an inexplicable sense of fragility, as if she might shatter at the slightest touch.
“That’s strange. There’s nothing physically wrong with her… why hasn’t she woken up after three days?”
The doctor hurried over and used his stethoscope for quite a while, but he couldn’t detect anything abnormal.
He paused and looked up at the red-haired girl beside him.
“You’re her friend, right? I remember you were the one who rushed her to the hospital in the first place. Could you tell me in detail whether she showed any unusual signs before or after she fainted?”
“Apart from being a bit weaker than other Alphas, there’s nothing wrong with her physically. Even though she accidentally hit her head at the time, the examination showed she only suffered minor injuries…”
“I see, Doctor. Are you suspecting that she might be avoiding reality, unwilling to wake up due to some kind of emotional shock?”
The doctor nodded slightly and set the stethoscope aside.
“So think carefully: Was there anything that deeply affected her, or is there someone she cares about? If you can bring that person here to talk to her, hearing their voice might just help her wake up.”
“This kind of situation isn’t actually uncommon. Last month, there was an Alpha in our hospital who attempted suicide by jumping off a building after being rejected by an Omega. He was barely rescued but remained unconscious. It wasn’t until his family brought that Omega to see him that he finally regained consciousness.”
As he spoke, he glanced at the unconscious girl out of the corner of his eye and frowned slightly.
“But with a friend as good-looking as yours… she probably wouldn’t resort to something like that over unrequited feelings.”
Chen Lan is an Alpha.
She and Bai Long, the unconscious girl, had been in the same school since middle school and shared a very close relationship.
This was an ABO world, where the average life expectancy reached around two hundred years, with higher-ranking individuals living even longer.
Although lifespans had extended, the legal age of adulthood remained eighteen.
Bai Long was different from other Alphas—her physical stamina and mental energy levels were relatively low, making her body quite weak and prone to fainting every now and then.
Chen Lan hadn’t paid much attention at first, assuming Bai Long would recover after some rest, just as she had in the past.
But unexpectedly, this time, three days had passed and she still hadn’t regained consciousness.
“Wait, but at the time, she was in a PE class and fainted after accidentally getting hit by a volleyball while trying to catch a serve. Logically, there shouldn’t have been anything particularly upsetting about that…”
Chen Lan was growing anxious. Bai Long was an orphan with no family to speak of.
Just last month, after turning eighteen, she had been forced to leave the orphanage and live on her own. Chen Lan was well aware of her situation and often took her to the cafeteria for meals when Bai Long was short on funds toward the end of the month.
But even so, Chen Lan was just a student herself—her ability to help was limited.
While she could assist with day-to-day life, if Bai Long truly remained in a vegetative state and never woke up, Chen Lan knew she would be powerless to provide the care Bai Long would need.
The thought made Chen Lan even more frustrated. She lifted a hand and ran it through her hair in agitation.
“As for people she cares about… we’ve been friends for so long, and I’ve never seen her show interest in or affection for anyone. When it comes to friends, I’m pretty much her only one. I come to see her and talk to her every day, but she hasn’t shown any reaction at all…”
“Wait, hold on.”
As if struck by a sudden thought, Chen Lan abruptly looked up.
“If not a person, what about something she cares about? Doctor, if we bring something she likes, could that trigger a reaction in her?”
“Anything will do, as long as it serves as a stimulus. That would increase the likelihood of her regaining consciousness.”
After receiving the doctor’s confirmation, Chen Lan quickly retrieved her wallet from her bag.
Then, she casually pulled out a few pink banknotes(100-yuan notes) from it and lightly tapped them against Bai Long’s face.
The taps weren’t hard, but the sound of the bills hitting her skin was crisp and audible.
Seeing this, the doctor was stunned. Realizing she had no intention of stopping, he quickly stepped forward to intervene.
“Wait, I meant for you to stimulate her, not slap her awake!”
“…I am stimulating her.”
Feeling slightly embarrassed, Chen Lan paused for a moment, choosing her words carefully before continuing.
“She doesn’t care about anything else—she just loves money.”
“See for yourself—isn’t she showing a reaction?”
The doctor had initially thought this method was absurd, but when he noticed Bai Long’s eyelashes tremble slightly, he was left speechless.
“…Then keep going.”
Chen Lan tried slapping the bills a few more times, even deliberately bringing them close to Bai Long’s nose to let her catch a whiff of the money’s scent.
But this time, there was no reaction at all.
“Why isn’t she responding again?”
“Hmm, probably the stimulus just isn’t strong enough.”
Her wallet was nearly empty—most of the money had already been used to cover Bai Long’s hospitalization fees.
Realizing this, Chen Lan narrowed her eyes and shifted her gaze toward the doctor.
“How about you give it a try, Doctor?”
Suddenly put on the spot, the doctor froze for a moment. After a brief pause, he pointed at himself in confusion.
“Me?”
“I’m not money—how am I supposed to do that?”
“Oh, that’s easy. Just go over and whisper in her ear. Tell her all her medical fees are waived. My friend here not only loves money but is also incredibly stingy. Saying that might work even better than slapping her with cash and humiliating her.”
“…”
The man opened his mouth but closed it again, watching Chen Lan shrug helplessly. Deep down, he felt something was off, but under her urging, he reluctantly moved closer to the bedside, half skeptical, half curious.
“Alright then, I’ll give it a try.”
His eyes flickered slightly as he looked down at the strikingly beautiful Alpha lying before him. Unconsciously, he swallowed, feeling a hint of unease.
To be clear, he harbored no ulterior motives—he was as straight as could be, a Beta who only had eyes for sweet, gentle Omegas.
However, Betas instinctively felt a natural aversion to anyone other than Omegas. When in close proximity, their pheromones would involuntarily surge, exerting a subconscious pressure to assert dominance.
Just like now. Even though the doctor tried his best to suppress it, Bai Long still triggered a defensive reaction within him.
What he hadn’t expected was that the moment he approached, he would be so overwhelmingly suppressed by her presence that he could barely breathe, frozen in place.
Chen Lan stood farther away. As Bai Long’s friend, she was accustomed to her faint pheromones, which held no oppressive effect on her.
She could sense a slight release of the doctor’s pheromones but couldn’t understand why his expression had turned tense, his lips pressed tightly together, his hands gripping his sleeves as if rooted to the spot.
“Doctor, are you alright? You look… worse than the one lying down.”
“It’s fine,” he forced out through gritted teeth, beads of sweat already forming on his forehead without him realizing.
“Has your friend undergone genetic testing since coming of age?”
“Not yet. She just turned eighteen last month, and her pheromones have only recently stabilized. She was planning to get it done soon, but the upcoming sports meet delayed things.”
Seeing the doctor’s reaction sent a pang of unease through Chen Lan. It wasn’t that she was overreacting—Bai Long’s genetic rank was low, and her pheromones were so faint that hardly anyone could sense them under normal circumstances.
The doctor’s sudden tension only heightened Chen Lan’s anxiety.
“What’s wrong? Is there an issue with her genes?”
If an Alpha could provoke such a strong reaction from him, a sudden thought flashed in Chen Lan’s mind. Excitedly, she stepped forward and grabbed the doctor’s hand.
“Could it be that she’s finally undergone a genetic mutation and differentiated into an Omega?!”
Bai Long had always been delicate and weak, with a low genetic rank. If she were an Omega, it might have been manageable—with her stunning looks, plenty of Alphas would have adored her and been willing to provide for her. At least she wouldn’t have to worry about food or shelter.
But fate had made her an Alpha. In this society, Alphas stood at the very pinnacle of the pyramid.
Every industry imposed high demands on an Alpha’s overall capabilities. Even decent companies required their employees to be at least Rank B at a minimum. Someone like Bai Long, barely scraping by as a C-rank, would be filtered out during the first round of interviews.
Because of this, Chen Lan often wished Bai Long were an Omega—then life wouldn’t be so difficult for her.
“As for whether she has differentiated or not, I can’t say for certain. However, her pheromones seem to have undergone some changes. I’d recommend scheduling a follow-up test afterward. The reason she’s been unconscious for so long this time might actually be linked to genetic shifts after coming of age.”
The doctor took a few steps back from Bai Long, then drew a deep breath to steady himself from the earlier pheromone-induced pressure.
Outwardly, he appeared calm, but his back was already damp with cold sweat.
“You should stay here and keep her company for now. If anything happens, just notify me. I… I need to step outside for some fresh air.”
Chen Lan opened her mouth, wanting to ask a few more questions, but the doctor practically fled the room in a hurry, not giving her the chance to speak.