A Short-Lived Cannon Fodder Alpha Just Wants to Be a Salted Fish - Chapter 12

Ji Xingyao could see it clearly now: the person next to her was “in the camp of Cao Cao but her heart was with Han”—physically with Class 1, but emotionally rooting for Class 2.

She just didn’t know which specific person in Class 2 Chu Yihan cared about. Ji Xingyao looked toward the court thoughtfully, her gaze sweeping past Wen Yuan and unconsciously landing on Shi Ran.

Hmm, the former School Beauty.

On the court, Shi Ran had transformed into a human marmot, screaming into Wen Yuan’s ear: “Ahhh!”

Wen Yuan pushed her away disdainfully. “Speak human.”

“I knew you could do it!” Shi Ran stopped screaming and started jumping up and down. “That flight was so beautiful!”

“Flight?” Zhang Lili spat. “It was the shot that was beautiful.”

Luo Weiyue and Zhao Qi were laughing on the side. Infected by their mood, Wen Yuan couldn’t help but curl her lips into a smile. The atmosphere was perfect, brimming with youth.

Suddenly, fragmented images flashed through Wen Yuan’s mind. They were scenes of her in university before transmigrating, playing basketball and sweating freely with her classmates. After making a shot, she had turned to look at the stands with a smile; the person there was backlit, their face blurred.

Wen Yuan instinctively looked toward that same direction in her current reality.

Her gaze traveled over row after row of dark heads and landed on Chu Yihan. Their eyes met, and Chu Yihan blossomed into a smile for her.

In an instant, a strange sensation like an electric current surged up her spine. It was like the feeling of being covered in sweat and then suddenly hit by an air conditioner’s breeze—a sharp shiver.

“Are we keeping this playstyle for the second half?” Zhao Qi’s question snapped Wen Yuan back to reality.

“Basically the same,” Wen Yuan arranged after regaining her focus. “Zhao Qi, keep an eye on Class 1’s ‘Shorty.’ Zhang Lili, keep tangling with that ‘Lemon’ like you just did.”

Zhang Lili corrected her: “It’s Lin Meng.”

Wen Yuan gave an “Mm.” “Just don’t let ‘Lemon’ get the ball if possible.”

Shi Ran: “To be fair, that ‘Lemon’ is pretty good.”

Luo Weiyue: “That ‘Lemon’ scores under the basket way too fast.”

“Uh…” Zhang Lili sighed internally, having given up on correcting their pronunciation.

After finishing their discussion, Wen Yuan glanced toward Class 1. Their girls had also finished their huddle. Lin Meng walked toward the stands, and Wen Yuan watched her go straight to Ji Xingyao’s side—very close to Chu Yihan.

Wen Yuan’s brow furrowed.

“Whoa, the School Beauty actually came. Why is she sitting with the Little Academic God?” Shi Ran muttered as she approached Wen Yuan. She looked at Wen Yuan, then at the stands, and let out a hiss. “You look pretty pissed that Lin Meng is getting close to the Little Academic God.”

Wen Yuan said nothing, which Shi Ran took as a silent confirmation.

“You didn’t… mark the Little Academic God, did you?” Shi Ran guessed boldly.

Wen Yuan’s face was the picture of shock.

“Because after marking, an Alpha treats an Omega as their private property. That’s why they get annoyed when another Alpha gets close to their Omega,” Shi Ran clicked her tongue. “Oh, this damn possessiveness.”

“Is your brain filled with sweat?” Wen Yuan rolled her eyes. She felt that if she didn’t tell the truth, this girl would hallucinate a whole drama series. “She has Alpha Rejection Disorder. I’m afraid if Lin Meng touches her, she’ll have a reaction.”

Shi Ran had once thought she might differentiate into an Omega, so she knew a bit about the various conditions Omegas could suffer from.

She suddenly remembered: “So on the day you differentiated, the Little Academic God actually endured a world-shaking urge to puke while carrying you to the infirmary?”

On the stands, Lin Meng said something to Chu Yihan. Under the lights, Chu Yihan’s smile was a bit dazzling. Wen Yuan stopped looking at Chu Yihan and turned to look at Shi Ran as if she were an idiot.

“She doesn’t have a rejection reaction toward you?” Shi Ran finally realized.

Wen Yuan gave a simple “Mm.”

“Do you think she also doesn’t have a reaction toward that ‘Lemon’? They’re sitting so close.”

“I don’t know.”

The air conditioning in the stadium felt like it had been adjusted; Wen Yuan felt a bit restless. She grabbed a bottle of water from the corner.

“There should be a rejection. That ‘Lemon’ offered her a lollipop, and the Academic God didn’t take it,” Shi Ran was still narrating the movements on the stands. “The Academic God probably just said she’s repelled by Alphas. That ‘Lemon’ is quite sensible; she took a huge step back.”

Listening to Shi Ran’s commentary, Wen Yuan slowly unscrewed the cap. While drinking, she lifted her eyes to the stands. The distance between the two had indeed increased.

Chu Yihan was looking at her. Perhaps because Wen Yuan hadn’t responded to their eye contact earlier, Chu Yihan looked a bit flustered now, her eyes blinking rapidly.

She was a bit cute.

As the ice-cold water went down, the restlessness in her body slowly receded. Wen Yuan took the bottle away from her lips and curved them into a smile toward Chu Yihan.

In the second half, the Class 2 girls were in great form, overtaking Class 1 in one go. With Lin Meng marked tightly, Class 1 became a bit disorganized. Although they adjusted quickly, they couldn’t close the score gap.

As long as they could maintain the lead and prevent Class 1 from scoring, it was basically a guaranteed win. However, near the end of the third quarter, something happened.

As Wen Yuan brought the ball to the three-point line to shoot, the “Dark-skinned Girl” flashed in front of her. Simultaneously, an Alpha’s pheromones pressed down on her. The sweat-scented pheromones were sour, pungent, and thick—downright suffocating.

If Wen Yuan wanted to press back, she would have to release pheromones even stronger than the other girl’s, but that would definitely be noticed by the referee and called as a foul. Betting on the fact that Wen Yuan couldn’t retaliate, the Dark-skinned Girl deliberately closed the distance, concentrating a small amount of pheromones directly against Wen Yuan’s spine. The pressure wasn’t massive, but it was hard to withstand.

“Captain!” Zhao Qi ran to the front right, signaling Wen Yuan to pass.

Wen Yuan’s lower lip was bitten bloodless. She could only barely resist the pressure to keep the ball under her control, but passing was difficult.

“Crap, why isn’t she passing?”

“Pass the ball!!”

“If you can’t hit the three, give it to someone else!”

“Don’t act tough just because you’re an Alpha!”

Complaints broke out in the stands. Someone mentioned “Alpha,” and the Dark-skinned Girl, feeling guilty, dialed back her pheromones slightly. Wen Yuan seized the chance to pass to Zhao Qi, who charged all the way to the basket and scored.

The third quarter ended.

Shi Ran noticed Wen Yuan’s face looked off. “Are you tired?”

Wen Yuan shook her head and whispered a warning to Shi Ran and Zhang Lili: “Watch out for their Alpha releasing pheromones.”

“Damn, how dare they!” Shi Ran’s mind was quick; she immediately understood what had happened. “You can’t press back, right?”

“No.” Wen Yuan looked at the Dark-skinned Girl across from her, disgust and contempt overflowing in her light amber eyes. “We can’t afford to lose face like that.”

Using pheromones to suppress an opponent on the court was despicable. If caught, the entire class would be disgraced. Zhang Lili cursed a string of “beautiful” Chinese words.

Afterward, as Wen Yuan expected, the Dark-skinned Girl began to intensify the pheromone pressure. Class 1’s score quickly caught up.

Near the end of the final quarter, Luo Weiyue got the ball but her path was blocked. She looked around, aimed at Wen Yuan, and shouted: “Captain!”

The moment Wen Yuan caught the ball, the Dark-skinned Girl pressed her pheromones down on her.

Wen Yuan dribbled the ball, head down, and suddenly let out a laugh. “Your complex features can’t hide your simple IQ at all, can they? Using pheromones to suppress people.”

Goaded by Wen Yuan’s words, the girl’s face darkened instantly.

Wen Yuan continued her provocation: “Has no one told you? Your pheromones really stink.”

Girls hate being told they smell bad. The Dark-skinned Girl lost control, growing more furious and releasing even more pheromones.

Wen Yuan suddenly lifted her head. Only then did the other girl see the cold, sharp, and arrogantly mocking eyes beneath Wen Yuan’s slightly damp hair. She froze for a split second.

Now!

Enduring the heavy wave of pheromones, Wen Yuan—with the metallic taste of blood in her mouth—shot the ball amidst the shock, curses, and noise of the crowd. The ball traced a long arc through the air and dropped precisely into the basket.

The roar of the crowd was drowned out by screams of joy.

“Nice shot!”

“We won!!”

“Class 1 is so disgusting for using pheromones!”

“Respect!”

That last word came from very close by. Wen Yuan turned her head and found it had come from Lin Meng. Surprised, Wen Yuan felt that Lin Meng was actually quite upright. Lin Meng had the chance to join the Dark-skinned Girl in crushing her, but she hadn’t.

Everyone on the court had realized by now that the other girl had used pheromones. Class 2 was furious, cursing Class 1 for their underhanded tactics. Class 1 felt too embarrassed to stay; as soon as the game ended, they cleared out of the stands.

Once the opponents were mostly gone and Class 2 had vented their anger, the crowd dispersed. Before leaving the gym, Wen Yuan glanced at the Dark-skinned Girl cowering in the corner.

Halfway out, Wen Yuan told Shi Ran the metallic taste in her mouth was too strong and she was going to buy candy, then she doubled back to the basketball court alone.

The stadium was empty, making footsteps exceptionally clear. The Dark-skinned Girl came out from the corner and, seeing who it was, her eyes flashed with wariness. Her voice trembled: “What are you doing back here?”

“Are you afraid of me?” Wen Yuan observed her expression. “Afraid I’ve come back for revenge?”

The girl scoffed disdainfully, “Me? Afraid of you?”

“Good that you’re not.” Wen Yuan smiled carelessly, approaching her with a gentle tone. “Then just take it.”

In stark contrast to her soft voice, an overwhelming wave of pheromones crashed down, sharp and freezing. The girl’s pupils shrank, her eyes widening in terror.

“First, this is to pay you back for the pheromone pressure earlier. It would be quite lame of me not to return the favor, wouldn’t it? Second…”

Wen Yuan paused, imitating the tone the girl had used in the equipment room when talking about Chu Yihan. “I just don’t like you, and I just wanted to teach you a lesson.”

The moment she finished speaking, the sheer aggression of her pheromones made the girl’s legs go weak. With a thud, she fell to her knees in front of Wen Yuan.

Wen Yuan licked the inside of her cheek and let out a mocking “tch.” She didn’t hold back until the girl’s nose began to bleed, letting the darker instincts of an Alpha play out to the extreme.

After leaving the gym, Wen Yuan turned toward the school store. Before she reached it, she ran into Chu Yihan, who timely handed her a lollipop.

Wen Yuan remembered Shi Ran’s “live broadcast” from the stands. Didn’t she say she didn’t want the candy Lin Meng offered?

Seeing Wen Yuan dazed and not taking it, Chu Yihan pulled out another one. “Don’t you like vanilla? I also bought strawberry.”

Wen Yuan’s eyebrows arched slightly as she took the vanilla one. “I was just thinking it’s quite a coincidence. I was just about to go buy candy, and you happen to give me one.”

“It’s not a coincidence,” Chu Yihan said. “I bought it specifically for you.”

Wen Yuan repeated blankly: “Specifically for me?”

Chu Yihan explained: “They said Zheng Qin’s pheromones don’t smell very good. I thought you might feel uncomfortable.”

“Zheng Qin? The Dark-skinned Girl?” Wen Yuan unwrapped the candy, agreeing, “It’s more than ‘not very good,’ it’s downright suffocating.” There was a hint of grievance in her complaint.

Chu Yihan’s lips curved. “And also… thank you.”

Wen Yuan bit the lollipop and looked sideways at Chu Yihan, hearing the latter add softly:

“Thank you for not letting me lose.”

The mellow, sweet flavor spread through Wen Yuan’s mouth, matching the sweet smile slowly blooming on Chu Yihan’s beautiful face.