As the other person’s listless voice fell, Xie Yun turned his gaze toward him. He saw the boy hanging his head again, staring back with those pitch-black pupils. His bangs draped over his eyes, creating a slightly oppressive feeling; his irises were as dark as ink.
Xie Yun averted his gaze and spoke the truth: “I was returning books. We just happened to run into each other on the way.”
Lu Yibing shot him a glance and stopped talking.
The students of the Elite Class had already rushed to the lab building, leaving only a few scattered people in the corridors and stairwells. The hot wind felt a bit dry against the skin, and the afternoon sun was piercingly bright.
The laboratory building at Field Academy had thirteen floors, with ten labs on each floor. Generally, the professors wouldn’t give hand-holding instructions to second-year students; everyone was assigned an individual room to work hands-on. Outside the labs were transparent floor-to-ceiling windows. The hermetic, black-and-white style of the building felt chilly even without the air conditioning.
Rooms were assigned by student ID numbers. As a transfer student, Xie Yun was assigned to the very last room. Fortunately, that remote corner wasn’t next to anyone he knew, so Xie Yun could conduct his experiments in peace.
Having changed into a white lab coat in the locker room, he was about to board the elevator with the crowd when two men in black suits and sunglasses intercepted him. “Young Master Xie, to ensure your experience and following Chairman Xie’s instructions, we will take you to a private laboratory. Please come this way.”
Black rubber gloves covered the somewhat bony fingers of one of the men as he made a “please” gesture. Xie Yun was puzzled but allowed the two of them to escort him away.
“As expected of a young master… he even has people waiting in the lab building.” A girl in a white lab coat exclaimed in awe.
Another girl was speechless and leaned in to whisper: “Tsk, are you stupid? Chairman Xie donated this entire lab building to the school. What do you think?”
The other replied, “Oh, right.”
The two of them looked toward Lu Yibing, who was following behind Xie Yun, with a knowing glance. An illegitimate son was truly just an illegitimate son; Chairman Xie wouldn’t even arrange a private room for him, yet the “F4” members all had them.
“Young Master Lu, your room is on the other side.”
Another man in black suddenly appeared at Lu Yibing’s side. The boy gave a very soft “Mm” and was also led away.
The two girls waiting for the elevator downstairs: ……
Xie Yun’s expressionless face was framed by transparent safety goggles. His white lab coat reached past his knees. Underneath, he wore a black shirt tucked into his waist with a belt. The lab coat hung open like a trench coat. Below, his black trousers tightly outlined his long legs.
The sound of three pairs of black leather shoes clicking echoed through the corridor. The men in black to his left and right couldn’t help but steal occasional glances at their young master. Bangs obscured his eyes, which showed not a trace of emotion; Xie Yun maintained a snowy-white, stiff face. His well-defined profile was bathed in the dim light of the corridor, shadows spreading across his features.
His long eyelashes fluttered like the wings of a fragile butterfly, trembling slightly. He looked beautifully defenseless.
When they arrived, the room was indeed spacious and secluded. If there was a difference, it looked like two labs merged into one.
“Young Master, we arranged a secluded room for your safety. I heard the chemicals in the ordinary labs have a certain level of toxicity. It was originally used to maintain…” One of the men in black stopped mid-sentence as the other immediately nudged him.
The explanation stopped abruptly. Xie Yun’s hand, which was about to open the door, paused. He turned his gaze to the speaker. “Maintain what?”
The other man hurried to reply: “Nothing, Young Master. The toxicity is just to better preserve the chemicals; it’s not harmful to humans. But Chairman Xie felt a bit uneasy about it, so he switched you to a non-toxic one.”
Xie Yun paused briefly as his gaze fell on their nervous, small movements. Something is wrong.
“Then you guys…”
“Is something wrong, classmate? Why are you hesitating at the door?”
A youthful voice, sounding as warm as the early summer sun, rang out. The newcomer was tall and looked toward him with a beaming smile. “Can’t open the door?”
The white lab coat made him look even taller. He watched Xie Yun, tilting his head with a smile.
[Okay, now the Field Academy F4 is all here. This is the protagonist Alpha F3, Zhou Yichao.]
Zhou Yichao. Xie Yun repeated the name in his mind as he looked at him. His smile was quite bright and sunny. However, Xie Yun didn’t recall seeing him in class.
[But there’s one fatal point I need to remind you of, Host…] According to the original plot, the “Alpha meets Omega” encounter happened at the stables, and the next checkpoint was supposed to be a meeting in the laboratory. Why wasn’t the lead Alpha looking for Lu Yibing?
[That’s exactly what I wanted to tell you…] The system let out a bitter laugh. [Those two bodyguard-looking guys took you to the wrong place. They swapped your room with the protagonist Omega’s.]
Xie Yun: …… [How could they make such a low-level mistake?]
The system was about to answer but lost its voice the moment it saw Xie Yun’s face—a face that made people dream. Because you look more like a protagonist than the actual one…
Having received no reply from the system, Xie Yun resigned himself to his fate and pushed open the glass door. “No, I was just chatting with them outside for a bit.”
Zhou Yichao continued smiling. “I see. I thought your room was locked like mine.”
Xie Yun had a bad premonition.
“This practical is quite important. I see our rooms are the only two nearby; would you mind if I joined you, classmate?” The smile remained fixed on the other’s face.
With his reddened knuckles still pressed against the transparent glass, Xie Yun replied flatly, “Do they not have a key?” He gestured with his eyes toward the two men in black still standing nearby.
One of them snapped back to attention and hurried to say, “The lock on Young Master Zhou’s private lab was broken by someone unknown, so it’s been closed and unused. We didn’t bring a key for it either.”
Xie Yun: ? What a clumsy excuse.
He took another glance at the lead Alpha, Zhou Yichao. In the original book, the Alpha and Omega would end up happily together; it was only because the two men in black sent him to the wrong place that Xie Yun was temporarily standing in for Lu Yibing. Besides, the lead Alpha already had his designated partner; he wouldn’t fall for a cannon fodder like him.
Conclusion: Zhou Yichao posed no threat to him.
“Come in, then.”
The voice, cold as frost on a winter branch, echoed in the empty corridor, sounding somewhat ethereal. Zhou Yichao nodded, said thank you, and followed him inside with a smile. Seeing the Young Master safely delivered, the two men in black departed.
Red, blue, purple, and pink chemical bottles were arranged on the grey-white tabletop, along with an optical microscope, petri dishes, and alcohol lamps. Long strip lights emitted a white glow that illuminated the entire room. Xie Yun opened his deep-blue-covered textbook and began to learn as he worked.
The atmosphere fell into a very eerie silence, broken only by the rustling of pages and the sound of pouring chemicals.
White rubber gloves covered his well-defined fingers. Xie Yun’s slender hand held a small vial of reagent, swirling it before his eyes before pouring it into a long glass tube. His dark lashes fluttered behind his goggles; his eyes were icy, and his thin lips showed not a trace of expression. He looked very serious.
Zhou Yichao watched him with a smile. He was indeed much better looking than the photo circulating on the forum; it had been worth skipping class to sneak into the Elite Class’s chemistry session to see him.
“Classmate, there’s another workstation on the left.” Xie Yun swirled the vial in his hand, not sparing him a single glance.
Zhou Yichao was snapped back to reality but gave a non-sequitur response: “For this step, you shouldn’t pour that reagent first. You should pour this one.”
Pinching a small vial of pink reagent from the workstation, Zhou Yichao pressed closer to Xie Yun. A firm, slender arm reached around and hooked over Xie Yun’s shoulder, pulling him into a near-embrace as he leaned in. “You need to use this pink one. Pour it into the blue one you’ve prepared.”
Warm breath puffed against the side of Xie Yun’s face. Their faces were nearly touching. One of the Alpha’s hands gripped Xie Yun’s wrist—the one holding the blue reagent while the other hand rested on his shoulder. With his lean fingers pinching the pink reagent: Splash— he poured it into the blue vial.
This chemical was highly corrosive; even with gloves, one wouldn’t be safe from it. If it splashed on the skin, it would burn. Having realized this, Xie Yun didn’t dare move at all.
Zhou Yichao poured the pink liquid extremely slowly. Xie Yun said coldly, “Thanks. I know how to do it now. Give me the reagent.”
As he spoke, he reached out with his other hand to take the pink vial from the other’s grasp. Zhou Yichao tightened his grip quickly. “Hey—be careful, classmate. If the chemical splashes on your hand, there will be trouble.”
The surface of the liquid swayed slightly in the glass vial. Xie Yun was speechless. “Give it to me. I’ll pour it.”
The liquid continued to flow: Splosh—
He smiled. “Is this your first time doing this experiment, classmate? I’m worried you won’t control the speed well; it will affect the results.”
The other ignored him and continued to do as he pleased. Xie Yun didn’t dare snatch it away with force, so he calmed his mind and spoke to him levelly: “Yes, it is indeed my first time. Will the flow rate and the results differ that much?”
Drip… drip… The splash turned into a slow drip, falling into the blue reagent container.
Xie Yun: …… It doesn’t need to be this slow.
The heavy scent of cedarwood suddenly entangled Zhou Yichao’s nose. It was cold, sharp, and smelled wonderful—enough to make one never want to let go. Zhou Yichao lowered his eyelids and looked sideways at the person emitting the fragrance.
Bangs swept over Xie Yun’s icy, dark eyes, and his long lashes cast a shadow like a fragile butterfly. Below his high nose bridge were his thin, pale-red lips. At such close range, Zhou Yichao could even see the faint blue veins pulsing under his snowy skin.
Xie Yun noticed the person beside him had stopped moving. Just as he lifted his eyes to call him, he locked eyes with someone outside the glass window.
In the corridor, the white light spread across Lu Yibing’s fair face. He was wearing his goggles and white lab coat, standing there silently. His pitch-black pupils looked somewhat gloomy beneath his scattered bangs, and his tall, slender frame was exceptionally striking.
How awkward.
Xie Yun immediately lowered his eyelids, avoiding Lu Yibing’s burning gaze. That was the protagonist Omega, after all. This feeling of being caught in an intimate moment was as if he, the cannon fodder, had been caught stealing the Omega’s Alpha.
Xie Yun swallowed hard and was about to turn his eyes to call Zhou Yichao.
Plip—
A drop of cold liquid landed on the webbing of his thumb.